Phantom of Beacon
by Cardinal Quinn
Summary: With the tales of Grimm, Maidens, and more coursing through Beacon, who's to say Ghosts are any different? Meet Jaune Arc, a boy gifted and cursed with the ability to turn into a ghostly form. He's an average guy, until a certain someone finds out his secret. What's he gonna do? Took some elements from Danny Phantom, but not a crossover!
1. Welcome to Beacon

Phantom of Beacon

Chapter 1:

 **Hey guys, so I've had this idea spinning around for a few weeks now. Jaune is pretty much the everyman of RWBY, and I like the character, so this is another Jaune story!**

"Out of the way!"

The floor swayed and creaked as he ran to the nearest trashcan, emptying his breakfast into it.

 _Why?! Every time I'm on a damn bullhead! When I fly the other way…_

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

 _ **A few hours earlier**_

"Oh Jaune, I can't believe you're leaving already! Now remember, you've got to keep your 'special gift' a secret! I can hardly imagine what the asshats in Atlas would do if they found out." Jen Arc said, pulling her brother into a hug.

Jaune rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. None of the ecto stuff, I've got it under control! I don't even transform by accident anymore!"

"Oh really? So what about the incident last week in the woods" She raised an eyebrow. "Or yesterday when your pants suddenly vanished downtown? Or this morning when yo-"

"Okay! So things aren't one hundred percent under control, but I'll be careful! Besides, what's the worst that could happen?" Jaune said nervously, scratching the back of his head.

Jen looked at him with concern. "Jaune. Atlas. Scientists. Bad. Focus." She reminded him. "There's some general up there who would probably have you captured, imprisoned, and experimented on in a lab, probably with needles and kniv-"

"Okay! I get it! I don't need the image of being cut up in my head! Look, I need to get running or I'll miss the bullhead. I'm gonna miss you though, sis." Jaune gave his sister a hug, earning one in response.

"Just be careful! And hey, maybe bring home a girl! Just don't do anything dad told you, it's a bunch of nonsense!"

Jaune rolled his eyes and ran towards the bullhead, sword strapped to his waist, gauntlets compacted on his wrists, blue eyes lightly flickering to green for a moment, before flickering back to blue.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

 _ **Present**_

Jaune finished emptying his stomach as the bullhead landed, prompting him to rush outside, nearly hugging the ground. "Oh sweet land! You were never meant to be ruined by machines flying in the skies!" He looked around at the other students, seeing a girl holding a giant scythe standing next to a blonde girl, the latter rushing off with unknown figures shortly after. "Well that was od-"

An explosion interrupted Jaune, as the scythe girl had an issue with some dust. A girl in white was screaming at scythe girl, before a girl in black shut white down. White stamped away, and black vanished out of nowhere.

Sighing, Jaune walked forwards, hearing a sad mumble of "Welcome to Beacon…" come from the scythe wielder. He stood over her, clearing his throat and saying "Hey, need a hand? I'm Jaune." He extended his arm towards her, smiling honestly.

She paused, before taking his hand and allowing him to pull her up. "Ruby. Hey, aren't you that guy who threw up on the ship?"

"Damn…"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Look, all I'm saying is that motion sickness is a very common problem!" Jaune exclaimed. Ruby giggled at him.

"I'm sorry! Vomit Boy was the first thing that came to mind!"

He rolled his eyes at her. "Oh yeah, well what if I called you Crater Face?"

Ruby looked at him in horror. "That wasn't my fault! Princess over there was shaking dust in my face!"

"Well the name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Ladies love it!" He said, crossing his arms proudly.

Ruby raised an eyebrow at him. "Do they?"

"They will! I mean I…nevermind…" He cut himself off. _"Nice job Jaune, almost say something stupid in front of the first cute girl you meet!"_

Ruby paused, a confused look on her face as she kicked the ground awkwardly. "Sooo, I got this thing." She said as she grabbed the scythe from earlier, extending it to full size, towering over her.

Had he not seen it earlier, Jaune may have jumped back in surprise, but he instead just looked on in awe.

"It's also a customizable high impact sniper rifle." She stated proudly.

Jaune grinned in response. "That's awesome!" She smiled at him, suddenly looking him up and down.

"So what do you have?" Ruby asked, practically bouncing.

"Well, it depends! I've got up close and personal and loud and proud!" He grinned at her.

"Silent but…no! Loud and proud!" She exclaimed, actually bouncing now.

Jaune grinned before he activated a switch on his gauntlets, expanding them to their full form, covering his hands and forearms. Four barrels popped out of each gauntlet, glowing in shades of red, blue, yellow, and green. "I call them Spiritus Caestus! They use special dust rounds that my sister designed so that they could be concentrated into a beam form."

Ruby grabbed his arm, looking at the different barrels of the gauntlets. "These are amazing! So what about up close and personal? Your sword?"

"Oh not just the sword!" He tapped the gauntlets, compacting the cannons and enlarging the fists, adding claws out of the fingertips. "I've got these too. They're dust charged too, just not with the firing power of the cannons. As for the sword, it's a family heirloom, but it does the job!" Jaune swung the sword for effect as it shot out an arc of glowing green energy. Jaune's face paled as a bush was cut in half.

Ruby's eyes widened and her grin grew wider, as if that was still somehow possible. "What was that?! That was amazing! Jaune, you've got to show me how your sword did that!"

"Oh! Well uh…" Jaune stammered. _"Think fast, idiot!"_ He grinned a liar's grin, sheathing the blade and scratching the back of his head. "Just a few modifications my sister made!"

Ruby was frozen in excitement as Jaune waved a hand in front of her face.

"Uhh, Ruby? Hello in there?" Jaune snapped his fingers a few times before she shook her head in response.

"Sorry! I'm a bit of a weapons dork, but those are amazing! Oh yeah, where are we going, by the way?" She asked as the two looked around the courtyard.

Jaune blinked at her. "Going? I was following you!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Ruby, over here! I saved you a spot!" The blonde girl from earlier flagged Ruby down.

Ruby waved back in response. "Oh! Jaune! Come over with me! That's my sister, Yang!" Ruby grabbed Jaune by the forearm, pulling him towards Yang.

Yang eyed Jaune up and down before winking at him. "Why hello there, I don't believe we've met. Yang, Yang Xiao Long. What do I call you, loverboy? Or has my darling sister already snatched you up?"

Jaune and Ruby both blushed. "Yang! Stoooooop! This is Jaune! He found me after SOMEONE abandoned me and I exploded!" Ruby flailed her arms and Jaune and Yang just laughed. "I'm serious! I exploded, then this crabby girl started yelling at me about it and it totally wasn't my fault because I was just trying to explain mysel-"

"YOU!" A voice shouted from behind Ruby. She jumped in surprise, turning around and seeing White from earlier. "Do you even know how dangerous Dust can be? Or did they not teach you that? Maybe you're just too young to understand!" She practically screamed at Ruby.

"Look, maybe you two just got off on the wrong foot! Why not take it back a few steps, and try to be friends!" Yang offered, causing White to roll her eyes.

"Oh sure! Then maybe we can paint each other's nails, stay up late, and talk about cute boys like tall, blonde, and scraggly here." She pointed her thumb at Jaune, who blinked, then frowned.

"Easy there, Ice Queen. You know, maybe you should change your last name from Schnee to Schneez, if you're going to be flinging dust at innocent people and causing them to blow up." Jaune countered, crossing his arms at White/Weiss.

Yang and Ruby's mouths dropped before they bust out laughing. "That was great, Jaune! I think you and I are gonna get along just fine!" Yang exclaimed, wiping a tear from laughter.

Weiss grew red in the face as she stormed off, yelling something about blonde idiots. Jaune, Ruby, and Yang continued to laugh as a microphone was tapped.

"Welcome students to Beacon Academy. My name is Professor Ozpin…"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

The students were gathered in the dining hall, the tables having been moved out to allow for sleeping space. Jaune had changed out of his regular hoodie and jeans into a pair of black sweats and a wifebeater, and was now sitting off to one side, leaning on the wall. Ruby and Yang walked towards him, smiles plastered on their faces.

Jaune took a look at the girls, taking in their appearances. Ruby was in a pair of sleeping pants and a black tank, looking cute, in Jaune's opinion. Yang on the other hand left little to the imagination, with her long, white legs barely covered by her black shorts. Her top was orange and extremely low cut, showing off her womanly assets. Jaune blushed as he shook his head to avoid staring at her.

"Oh what's the matter, Jaune? See something you like?" She winked at him before laughing at his flustered form of a response. "Oh I'm just joking, loverboy. But hey, you don't look too bad yourself."

Jaune blushed further, causing Ruby to lightly punch Yang on the arm. "Yang, leave him alone! You meet anyone else while we were gone, Jaune? Anything exciting happen?" Ruby asked.

Jaune thought back to a few minutes ago when he was changing into his sleepwear.

 _Jaune slipped his gear off and threw his pants on, digging through his bag for his shirt. As he finally found it, it was snatched from his hands and thrown through an open door by a ginger haired boy, who smirked. "Oops." He said, laughing and walking off._

 _Jaune groaned and walked through the door, looking around for his shirt. It was nowhere to be found, and he groaned. "How could this get worse?" Almost as if Oum above was listening, Jaune's pants turned intangible and slipped right down to the ground before they turned back to normal, leaving him clad in only his boxers._

" _Ah!"_

" _Oh my…"_

" _Perfect…"_

 _Jaune turned to see the Weiss, the girl in black from earlier, and a redhead all staring at him in his state of undress. "Ah!" He pulled his now tangible pants back up, blushing madly at the three. "Ehheheh…you three ladies haven't seen a shirt get thrown in here, have you?" Jaune stammered._

 _The girl in black stepped forward, pulling the shirt from her yakuta. "It's Jaune, right? Here you are." She handed him the shirt before she walked off, swaying her hips as she did. "I'm Blake, by the way." She left the room, leaving a blushing Jaune staring at her._

" _P-put your shirt on, you dunce!" Weiss yelled after a moment, a blush spread across her cheeks. "Come on, Pyrrha!" She pulled at her friend's arm. "Pyrrha! Hello!"_

 _Pyrrha blinked before blushing further, her glance not straying from Jaune's muscular form. "Oh! Yes, we should be going! Jaune was it? This is the girls changing area, though you certainly look well bui-"_

" _PYRRHA!"_

" _I'm sorry! Coming Weiss! I'll hopefully see you around, Jaune." She blushed, then smiled, before walking off with Weiss, who was muttering something about indecencies._

 _Jaune blinked, blushed harder, then put his shirt back on._

"Nope, nothing out of the ordinary here!" Jaune said nervously. "What about you two?"

"Psh, just Ruby writing a letter to her friends back at Signal. Way too cute for words, I mean she was just, UGH-" Yang was hit in the face with a pillow by Ruby.

"Yang, stop it! I didn't get to bring all of my friends with me to Beacon like someone did!" Ruby groaned into her own pillow.

Yang rolled her eyes. "Well what about Jaune? That's plus one friend!" Jaune nodded in response, earning a smile from Ruby.

"Well yeah, but then Weiss already hates me! That's a negative friend!"

Jaune placed his hand on her shoulder. "Ruby, I don't think there's such thing as negative friends. That's just one friend and one enemy! Plus, with time, maybe Weiss will ease up a bit!" He nervously thought about the changing room incident. "If anything she probably hates me just as much as you, if that helps!"

Ruby looked at him, confused. "You? I mean I know you got a great burn on her earlier, but that doesn't earn hat-"

"Oh look! What about Blake?!" Jaune interrupted, not wanting to talk about his pants ghosting themselves. He pointed towards her, prompting Yang to drag Ruby over to the bow clad girl. Things were going well until Weiss went over and started yelling about her beauty sleep, catching eyes with Jaune, and blushing before she stormed off again. Jaune sighed, rolling over in his sleeping bag and drifting off.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Jaune! Vomit boy wake up!" Ruby yelled, causing Jaune to bolt awake. His eyes glowed green for a moment before he realized where he was. "You alright Jaune? Did your eyes just change colors?" She asked.

"What?! No! Must just be a uh…a trick of the light, yeah!" Jaune panicked.

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Yeahhhh, well, come on! Get dressed! We only have a few minutes left to eat breakfast before initiation!" She pointed at Yang who was already dressed and ready.

Jaune jumped up and started changing as he ran, earning a wolf whistle from Yang, though that stopped when his pants flew off before his jeans flew on. Jaune dressed in less than a minute, rushing past the tables with food and grabbing a muffin before re-meeting up with a blushing Yang and Ruby a few minutes later, heading out to the cliffs with the girls.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Sir, how exactly are we going to be landi-AHHHHHHH" Jaune cried as he was launched into the air, before angling his body and glancing around him. "Well here goes everything!" Jaune closed his eyes, opening them as they turned green and a white ring went around his body. His hair turned white, his hoodie changed from black and orange to white and blue, and his jeans turned black. He glided down towards the forest, catching his breath as he landed. "I did it! I went full ghost! Plus no one saw me! Yeah!" He closed his eyes and pumped his fist in the air.

"Jaune?"

"Shit…"

 **SURPRISE! I'm actually writing two stories at once! So it looks like someone found out Jaune's little secret pretty fast! Poor Jaune, his luck is the worst! But hey, he has a partner now! As to who that will be, you'll have to stay tuned to find out! By all means send in a review of who you think it is! And just review in general! Also, check out my other in progress story 'Battle of the Bands'! It's another RWBY story, though it has no Grimm! Review, enjoy, and see you all in a few days!**


	2. The Emerald Forest

Phantom of Beacon

Chapter 2:

Jaune slowly turned around, eyes still closed. As he slowly opened them, the first thing he saw was a black bow. "Blake? This isn't what it looks like! What did you hear?"

"Oh, not much, just you talking about going full ghost, and then the obvious seeing you in complete reverse color scheme." Blake looked him up and down. "Then there was that green beam of energy that you launched out of your sword when you were with Ruby."

Jaune stared, open mouthed. "You saw that? Were you following us?" He asked, crossing his arms.

"I was reading, and a giant green arc of energy is a bit hard to miss. So Jaune, I ask you this: What aren't you telling me about you? Are you a ghost? A spirit lingering in this world?" Blake questioned.

Jaune shook his head. "Nothing like that! I'm still very much alive, see?" A white ring appeared around Jaune before displacing up and down his body, changing him back to normal. Blake stepped forward, taking Jaune's wrist in her hand.

" _His heartbeat is pretty quick."_ Blake thought, before looking at the boy to find him blushing. She dropped his wrist quickly, before looking at him again. "Jaune, if you're alive, then what are you?"

"Well…I was an assistant in a lab back in Arcadia about six months ago. The head scientist was attempting to break the barrier between the world of the living and the dead."

 _Jaune checked his watch, 60 seconds until activation time. "This portal could change Remnant as a whole!" He said, grinning at the machine. He was in the epicenter of the lab, having been a technical assistant in building the portal. Taking one final look, he noticed a plug was loose inside._

 _An alarm went off, signaling a 30 second warning time._

" _Not a second to lose!" Jaune dashed forward into the portal, and he began working the plug back into place. Just to Jaune's luck, the plug wouldn't quite reach the socket. "Oh come on!"_

" _TEN SECONDS UNTIL PORTAL ACTIVATION. PLEASE STAND CLEAR." An automated voice announced._

 _Jaune struggled, putting all he had into stretching the plug, finally getting it into the socket. "Yes!" He cheered just as the lights flickered on in the portal. There was a flash, a bang, and Jaune's world went green._

 _He stumbled out of the portal, burns all over his body. An alarm was sounding, and footsteps of security could be heard running down the hallway. Jaune struggled his way to the emergency exit, hobbling up the stairs and through the field._

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

 _Jen Arc was in a lab of her own, working on a new dust generator for her staff, when she heard a rustle outside. Heading out, she saw Jaune, injured and half conscious fall to the ground._

 _She ran forwards, checking his pulse and trying to tend to the burns. "Dammit Jaune! Mom's gonna kill me for this." She said before she placed her hand over his heart. For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."_

 _Jen gave off a faint glow of blue as she unlocked Jaune's aura. He began to glow white, before a flash of green emanated from his body. Jaune began to change, his hair turning white. As his eyes flickered open, Jen noticed they were glowing green._

 _His wounds healing, Jaune slowly sat up, looking at his sister. "Jen…what happened to me?"_

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"After that, Jen made me swear to keep what had happened a secret. She helped train me in my aura a bit, and that helped me start to get control of this 'ghost' form. I don't really know what happened to the lab after that. I went by a few days later and everything had been cleared out." Jaune explained as the two walked, keeping an eye out for Grimm.

Blake stopped, looking at Jaune. "So you don't really know what happened to you at all?"

"Well, my sister ran a DNA test on me. It was a mixture of human and…something else. Not Faunus, and Grimm don't have DNA, so it wasn't that either. We took it to assume it was ghost, and that I guess I'm now half ghost or something. Blake, I've got to ask you to please not tell anyone about this. If Ozpin and the teachers found out…" Jaune paled at the thought, his stomach wrenching.

Blake looked at Jaune with concern, before making a decision. Jaune, you've got to trust me with this, so I suppose I'll give you a reason to trust me, but it's a secret as well. Can I trust you?" She asked, before receiving a nod. Her hands went to her head, untying her bow and revealing a pair of cat ears.

Jaune blinked at her, before speaking. "You're…a Faunus?"

Blake nodded, preparing herself for the worst.

"Awesome!" Jaune exclaimed.

Blake's mouth dropped in shock. "Y-you're not disgusted by me? You don't see me as some kind of freak?"

"Blake, you just saw me turn into a ghost, fly through the sky, change back into a human, and then listened to my horrific tale of being a half ghost. If anything, I'm more surprised you don't see ME as a freak. As for being a Faunus, well, it doesn't bother me. I grew up in a pretty evenly balanced human/Faunus community, so everyone was, for the most part, pretty kind to one another." Jaune grinned at her. "Plus, they're pretty cute."

Blake blushed as red as Ruby's cloak at Jaune's final sentence. _"Cute? No one's ever called them cute before! I mean, even Adam just looked at them like they were nothing out of the ordinary. Guess Jaune's different._

"Blake?" Jaune asked, waving his hand in front of her face. "Blaaaaake?"

She shook the images out of her head, tying her bow back on her head. "Well Jaune, now we each have something to keep secret for the other. Can I be trusted now?" She stuck her hand out to him, pausing at his moment of uncertainty.

Jaune looked at her, watching as her bow slightly twitched, before he took her hand in his and shook it. "Trust. Oh! I just realized! We're partners now, aren't we?"

Blake froze, staring at him in the most deadpan way possible. "Jaune…you're seriously just now realizing that?"

"What?! Oh no…I was just joking! Funny man here!" Jaune leaned one hand onto a tree, before his arm went intangible and he fell right over.

Blake smirked, before going to her partner and helping him up. "So I take it you don't have full control over your powers? I mean between this and the pants incident…"

Jaune blushed at the memory. "Well, for the most part I actually do. Just sometimes if I get flustered, well, you saw what happens."

"Well if anything, it's a one of a kind gift. Never be ashamed of it, Jaune. Now, as nice as it is chatting out here, maybe we should find the relic?" Blake suggested, taking a look around the clearing.

Jaune nodded, glancing around as well, before looking at the sky. "Well, it looked like there were some ruins to the east of the cliffs, and if the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, then we should head this way!" He said, pointing east.

Blake nodded in agreement. "Lead the way, Jaune."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Jaune and Blake stepped forward into the ruins, seeing various pillars containing chess pieces. "Think this is it?" Jaune asked, earning an eye roll from Blake.

Blake looked at the pillars, mentally counting how many were left. "Some of the pieces are missing. Guess we weren't the first ones here."

Jaune stepped forward, taking a white knight piece in his hand. "How bout a knight? It's like me!" He grinned at Blake who raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh yes, the white knight. Wielder of a sword and even more ghostly than a sheet." She joked, finally getting an eye roll back. "Oh, so you do have a sense of sarcasm!"

Jaune grinned, storing the relic in his bag. "Well sure I do. Just most of the time I hide it away, like my pow-Ruby!"

Blake blinked, turning towards the forest. Ruby and Yang had just charged in, a few Ursa on their tails.

Yang leaped over one as it charged, slamming her fist down into the top of its head with a satisfying crack. She landed and made to charge at the other, before a red blur shot past her and a suddenly headless Ursa was in front of her. "Oh come on Ruby, I had that one!" Yang shouted.

"Yang, we're partners now! And as your partner I think I should get to kill SOME of the Grimm!" Ruby cried, flailing her arms nonsensically. She turned back towards the ruins, and grinned. "Jaune!" She started to run forward before her hood was grabbed by Yang.

"Easy there, little sister. Don't want you overexerting yourself. Blake! Ladykiller! Hey!" She waved, casually walking to the duo, Ruby in tow. "Nice to see you made it. Xiao Long did it take you two to get here?" She grinned.

Blake groaned at the pun, while Jaune just chuckled lightly. "It wasn't too bad actually. Up until you two got here, we didn't actually see a single Grimm. It was kind of weird! Convenient, but weird!" He said, grinning at the blonde and the reaper.

"So, you and Blake eh? Well, I guess there is only one of Jaune to go around, so I GUESS I'll be fine with Ruby as a partner." Yang joked, causing Ruby to elbow her in the ribs.

"Yang! Totally not coo-"

 _ **BOOM**_

"What in the world was tha-" Blake was cut off as the trees near the edge of the clearing burst forward, a Deathstalker charging out. On its head was a ginger haired girl with what appeared to be a grenade launcher. The beast stabbed its tail at her, only to have it knocked aside and the grenade launcher slammed onto its head, knocking it out.

"Aww, it's broken." The ginger haired girl said.

Pyrrha rushed out of the forest, noticing Nora atop the now unconscious Grimm. "Nora! Please, don't leave me behind like that!" She took a moment to catch her breath, and Nora was gone.

"Ooooh!" Nora cooed as she looked over the pieces, grabbing the white rook piece. "I'm queen of the castle! I'm queen of the castle!" She sang to herself.

"Nora! Please!"

"Ehehe, coming Pyrrha!" Nora skipped back to her partner.

Blake blinked at the two, before turning to Jaune. "Did she just ride in on a Deathstalker?"

"Oh come on Blake, not the strangest thing you've seen today." Jaune mumbled to her. She rolled her eyes in the usual way as a loud screech was heard.

Weiss and a boy in green came running out of the forest as a Nevermore came soaring over the clearing. "Hurry up! Run!" Weiss ordered as the two ran for their lives.

"Blake, time we left! We only need to get the relic back to Ozpin, so I say we run away and live!" Jaune said, getting a nod from Blake, Yang, and Ruby.

Ruby ran and grabbed the other white knight piece, as Weiss grabbed the other white rook. The Deathstalker began to stir and started to charge the teens.

"Oh man, run!" Jaune shouted as the eight began to run for the cliffs. The Nevermore took off after them, soaring ahead and sinking its talons into the stone bridge at the base of the cliff.

"Nora, distract it!" The boy in green shouted.

Nora nodded, grabbing her grenade launcher and firing a few rounds at the Nevermore. The Deathstalker rushed at her, before it was blocked by Green and Weiss.

Jaune and Blake began to make a mad dash across the bridge as the Nevermore soared towards them, Ruby and Yang close behind. It slammed into the stone below them, causing Yang to be thrown back and Ruby to plummet towards certain doom.

"Ruby!" Yang screamed, running to jump off for her when she saw a rush of white sail downwards towards Ruby. She looked closer, seeing a clawed gauntlet stretch out towards the reaper, grabbing her hand in his as he sank the claws into the stone beside him.

Ruby's eyes were closed, thinking she was dead. _"Well, at least I can open my eyes and see mom…"_ she thought as she slowly opened one eye. What she saw was not her mother, but rather a white haired/green eyed Jaune Arc, slowly pulling them both back up from the abyss. "Jaune? Is that you?"

"Yeah Ruby, it's me. You okay?" He asked as he climbed. "Hey Blake, lower your weapon down for us! Yang, help her pull us up!"

Blake switched Gambol Shroud into ribbon form before lowering it to the duo, feeling a tug at the end. "Yang! Hurry up! That thing's coming back!"

Yang ran and fired a round from her gauntlets, launching her across the gap. She grabbed the ribbon and pulled with all her might, pulling Jaune and Ruby up over the edge.

"Are you two okay?" Blake looked her partner over, not a scratch on him.

Jaune nodded. "I think Ruby may be a bit shaken up, but she'll live."

"Jaune, what did you…how did you…why do you…" Ruby started, before seeing Jaune shake his head.

"Not the time! We need to take that Nevermore down, now, and I have a plan! Blake, take your ribbon and tie it around those two pillars, like a giant slingshot! Yang, launch yourself into the sling, and fire right at the beast. You knock it down, and then Ruby and I load in for the finishing shot." Jaune ordered, earning a nod from the first two girls before Ruby nudged him on the shoulder.

"Jaune, why are we launching at it?"

Jaune smirked. "We're clipping its wings."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren, Weiss Schnee, Nora Valkyrie. The four of you recovered the white rook pieces, and shall henceforth be known as Team Periwinkle (PRWN), lead by Pyrrha Nikos!" Professor Ozpin said.

The staff and students clapped as PRWN was formed. Nora cheered and hugged Ren, while Pyrrha simply smiled. Weiss rolled her eyes at Nora before smiling at Pyrrha as the four were ushered off the podium.

"Jaune Arc, Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long. The four of you recovered the white knight pieces, and shall henceforth be known as Team Jazzberry (JBRY), lead by Jaune Arc!" Ozpin announced, earning a cheer from the students.

Jaune pointed at himself in shock. "Me, sir?"

"Congratulations young man." Ozpin said, shaking Jaune's hand before ushering the four off the podium. "This concludes initiation for our new term at Beacon. Classes begin tomorrow, so for those of you who just faced perils, go, find your dorms, and relax."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Ruby and Yang blocked Jaune as he went to head into their room. "Not so fast, Jauney! We want to know, how did you save Ruby like that?! I mean, before I could even take a step, you were flying down there as a white blur!" Yang exclaimed.

Jaune paused, trying to come up with an explanation. "Oh, well Yang, you see what happened is…"

Yang raised an eyebrow impatiently before Blake spoke up. "It's his semblance. It allows him to pass through walls at his will, though every time he uses it, his color palette reverses itself. Strange, but effective, right Jaune?"

"Right! Sorry I didn't tell you, just uh…the white hair embarrasses me! Makes me look like a grandpa, right?!" Jaune scratched his hair.

Ruby stared at him like a Grimm in the headlights. "You. Can. Pass. Through. Walls?! That's so cool! How does it work? Are there limits? Does that ever mean your food falls ou-"

"Ruby." Yang placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "I think Jaune's a little tired right now. Why don't we all just go take a rest before dinner, okay" She said, looking at Jaune.

He nodded, opening the door for them. "Thanks Yang. So who gets which bed?"

 **A/N: Wow everyone! I honestly never expected THIS MUCH of a response after the first chapter! I'm thrilled that everyone (well, 99% of everyone) is enjoying it! I know the first chapter was a bit rough, but it's a first chapter! Nothing ever starts out perfect, but hey, I'm trying! So someone actually guessed that it would be Blake who found Jaune out as a ghost so quickly, and I mean, it makes sense. She's been different her whole life, and to see someone else so different, well, she could understand. The teams and pairings were fun to play with after I had Jaune and Blake, and I like how they turned out. I know the acronyms were somewhat stretching, but they fit the CNR! Jazzberry and Periwinkle are valid colors, so boom! And I know there wasn't a whole lot of 'Jaune Phantom' this chapter, but as we progress, we'll see more of his powers and him gaining control. Give me time! Anywho, here's chapter two complete! I'll have chapter 6 of 'Battle of the Bands' up in a few days, and should have chapter 3 of this out promptly! In the meantime, read, review, and enjoy! And please, don't flame review. If you don't like something, be constructive with criticism! Constructive criticism helps people grow! Review! Bye!**


	3. Classes and Trials

Phantom of Beacon

Chapter 3:

The sun began to rise over Beacon Academy, and our resident blonde was sleeping peacefully. After a long night of unpacking, figuring out who would get which bed, and then at Ruby's suggestion, making bunk beds, Team JBRY earned a rest.

Jaune snuggled closer into his pillow, enjoying the comfort of the beds. _"I had no idea these beds were so soft! And the pillows! So warm!"_ He thought, pressing his face closer…

"...Jaune?" Blake whispered, a blush having crept onto her face.

Jaune opened his eyes, seeing not his pillow, but rather Blake's yakuta. He slowly glanced up to see her face, yellow eyes looking down at him with a look that could either kill or shock, or both. Jaune sprung backwards out of the bed falling onto the floor with a loud thud.

Ruby jolted awake, springing into action at her bedside, only to see Jaune on the floor and Blake as red as Ruby's namesake. "Jaune? Blake? What's going on here?"

"Nothing! Nothing, right Blake?" Jaune nearly shouted.

Blake stared at him for a few seconds before replying. "Right! Nothing at all!"

 _ **A Few Hours Earlier**_

 _Jaune tossed and turned in his sleep, dreaming about the accident in the lab, and a pair of glowing red eyes that emerged from it as he ran. It chased him into a field, where he hobbled as fast as he could. Reaching a barn, he banged on the door, but it wouldn't budge. As the beast grew closer and closer, Jaune shrunk against the door, only to fall right through it…_

Jaune phased in his sleep, falling down through his bed onto Blake's bed gently. As he felt unknown warmth beside him, Jaune's nightmare ceased, his fear subsiding.

 _ **Present**_

Ruby raised an eyebrow at the pair, before shrugging it off and digging through her bag for her stash of cookies. "Yang! Did you eat my cookies?!"

Yang, still not awake, snored quietly from the bottom bunk.

Blake, still flustered, grabbed her clothes and headed to the bathroom, claiming the first shower. As she closed the door, she locked eyes with Jaune, before blushing again and slamming the door.

Jaune hit his head on the dresser over and over. _"Why. Why. Why. Why."_ He thought.

 _ **First Class - Grimm Studies**_

"Monsters! Deeeemons... Prowlers of the night! Yes, the creatures of Grimm have many names, but I merely refer to them as prey! Ha-ha!" Professor Port looked out at the awkwardly silent class. "Uhm…And you shall too, upon graduating from this prestigious academy! Now, as I was saying: Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world! Our planet is absolutely teeming with creatures that would love nothing more than to tear you to pieces! And that's where we come in. Huntsmen! Huntresses..." (gives Yang a wink, which she groans uncomfortably at) "Individuals who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves! From what, you ask? Why, the very world!"

Team JBRY sat in the front row, Yang sitting up and paying attention, Blake taking notes, and Jaune and Ruby sat with their heads propped on their arms as they drifted in and out of sleep.

Port coughed, signaling Ruby to wake up, nudging her leader who continued to doze. "That is what you are training to become. But first: A story. A tale of a young, handsome man... Me! When I was a boy..."

Port droned on, his words fading into blahs as he rambled on about himself. Blake stopped taking notes at this point rolling her eyes at the man. _"What does this have to do with killing Grimm?"_ she thought.

"Ah-heh-hem!" Port coughed, waiting until he had everyone's (minus Jaune) attention. "In the end, the Beowolf was no match for my sheer tenacity, and I returned to my village with the beast in captivity and my head held high, celebrated as a hero! The moral of this story? A true Huntsman must be honorable! A true Huntsman must be dependable! A true Hunts…" Port droned until Jaune felt Ruby nudge him in the ribs slightly.

"Mr. Arc!" Port shouted, fully waking Jaune.

"BWAH! Yes?!"

"Now that you've joined us, I asked if you saw yourself as an ideal Huntsman?"

"Yes sir!" Jaune responded almost automatically.

Port nodded at him. "Splendid! Now come down and face your opponent!"

Jaune paused, blinking at his teammates and then Port. "What?"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Jaune stood in front of the class, facing a large black cage, gauntlets armed. He looked towards everyone in the class, taking in a large breath of air.

"Now Mr. Arc, as this is a classroom setting, I would advise against your wrist cannons."

Jaune nodded, disarming his firearms. He drew his sword, giving it a few test swings. _"Well Arc, this is your chance to shine. Better not mess it up!"_ He thought, trying to calm his nerves.

Yang and Ruby gave a sympathetic cheer for their leader. "Go Jaune!" Yang shouted.

"Yeah! Bring home a win to team Jazzberry!" Ruby raised a fist in the air.

Blake looked on at Jaune, the two having not spoken since the incident that morning. She stared at him, clearly nervous, and she sighed. _"It was just an accident after all…"_ she thought, before scribbling a few things down on her notebook, before ripping out the page and folding it into a makeshift flag. "Fight well!" She cheered.

Jaune looked out, catching her gaze and smiling confidently. _"I can do this! I can really do this!"_

The cage door dropped, revealing a black beast with white bony armor and two long tusks coming from its face. It let out a screech before charging at Jaune.

" _Oh Oum I can't do this!"_ He thought as he jumped to the right to dodge the Boarbatusk's attack. Backpedaling a bit, Jaune glared at the beast as it thrusted its tusks towards his chest. He swung his sword downwards, catching the tusks on the blade.

The Boarbatusk struggled against Jaune, before gaining the upper hand and tossing his sword across the room.

"Oh ho! What will you do now without your sword?" Port taunted.

Out at her desk, Weiss smirked smugly. _"Serves him right for calling me Ice Queen! Even if he does have amazing muscl-NO! No thinking about that!"_ She thought as her cheeks turned red.

Jaune glanced at the other side of the room where his sword now lay. _"Crap!"_ he thought as he flicked his hands out, bringing the dust claw tips out. He took a more primal stance, a nervous look on his face.

The Boarbatusk went into a rolling attack towards Jaune, the blonde's claws raking against its bone armor. Before Jaune could react, it charged at him from behind, flinging him forward.

Jaune crashed into the cage, his aura taking a significant blow. "Ah!" He cried out as he attempted to channel his remaining aura into healing his back. His wrist beeped, showing him that his aura was in the yellow. "Gotta end this fast!"

The Boarbatusk reared its tusks in the air before charging once again. Blake's eyes widened, taking in a breath of air. _"Jaune!"_ she thought as she leaned forward on her desk, reaching for Gambol Shroud.

Jaune took his primal stance once again, this time a look of pure viciousness on his face. The Boarbatusk charged at him, rolling into another rolling attack. BRY of Jazzberry looked, ready to jump in if needed.

Jaune caught the beast by its tusks, using the momentum to flip it behind him into the bars of the cage. While it was stunned, he channeled his intangibility into it, phasing it halfway through the bars. The Boarbatusk struggled and flailed, trying to somehow get free, until Jaune leaped above it and sliced his slightly glowing clawed gauntlets at its exposed underbelly, silencing it. Jaune panted as the beast began to fade, dropping to one knee.

A few students clapped, and Port walked forward pulling Jaune back to his feet. "Splendid work my boy! Though you lost your primary armament early on, you used your remaining weaponry and skills to turn the tides in your favor! Though you should have gone for the underbelly earlier on, as that would have saved you some aura."

Jaune nodded, before walking over and picking up his sword. He returned to his seat, getting a look of praise from Ruby, a slap on the back and a wink from Yang, and an amused look from Blake.

"With that display, class is dismissed for the day! For today, no homework, but keep up on your studies!" Port signaled towards the Grimm Studies book.

As team JBRY went to leave, Ruby jumped on Jaune's back. "Jaune, that was great! You've gotta show me those gauntlets more! I mean you were all like 'whoosh whoosh' and it was all 'rawrrrrrrrr' and you were all 'wahhhh hiyaaaaa'!" Her arms flailed in front of Jaune's face in karate movements.

"Thanks Ruby, but it was no big deal. I could have done loads better though." Jaune replied, hoisting the reaper along as they headed towards combat class.

Blake placed her hand on his shoulder. "Jaune, really. You did well. No need to beat yourself up over it."

"Yeah, I think he got beat up enough!" Yang smirked, earning a groan from the others. "But really though loverboy, that was a great fight!"

Jaune smiled earnestly as his team entered the arena classroom. "Thanks guys. And hey, with any luck, I won't have to fight in combat class!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Our first match will be Jaune Arc and Cardin Winchester. Please enter the arena and prep for combat." Miss Goodwitch announced as the roster randomized.

Jaune deadpanned. "Why me?" He groaned, earning a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see Pyrrha, a warm look on her face.

"Jaune, don't worry! I'm sure you'll do quite well!" She said, green eyes meeting blue.

Yang pumped her fist in the air. "Yeah! P-Money's right! Go kick some butt!"

Jaune sighed and headed down the stairs into the arena, gearing up for his second match of the day. As he stepped into the lights, Jaune saw his opponent for the first time, realizing it was the guy who threw his shirt into the girls changing room. "Hey! You're the one who threw my clothes the other night!"

Cardin smirked. "Yeah? You have a good time in there, or did the sight of a woman break you?" He laughed as Jaune glared at him.

Jaune's glare broke as he smirked. "You know, it actually went fine. Plus, I share a room with three girls now, and it's pretty great! They're gorgeous! I actually feel bad for you, Cardin, sharing a room with just guys. Unless you're into that, which is totally fine. You be you!" The students in the seating area snickered as Cardin grew red in the face.

"You're dead, Arc!" He shouted.

Miss Goodwitch hit the alarm bell once. "Enough! Now, arm yourselves and we will begin!"

Cardin drew a large black mace from his back, swinging it around mercilessly. "You're going down, loser."

Jaune flicked his gauntlets out once again, letting the clawed tips loose. The bell sounded, and the match began. Rather than charging, Jaune took a defensive stance.

Cardin ran at Jaune, swinging his mace at the blonde's face. Jaune ducked, swinging his fist and hitting Cardin across the jaw, sending him back a few steps. Cardin's aura dropped slightly, his face curled into a snarl.

Jaune grinned as he dodged another blow from Cardin, backpedaling as Cardin advanced more and more. As he went to duck again, Cardin raised his knee and hit Jaune on the chin, stunning him long enough to give Cardin a chance to swing his mace towards the blonde's chest.

Jaune exploded from the impact as he was sent flying backwards towards the wall, taking a major hit in his aura. He took a glance at his gauntlet again, showing he was nearing the red zone of his aura. Jaune closed his eyes, the thought of _"Going ghost!"_ went through his mind. A white ring appeared at his waist, splitting into two as his color scheme inverted. His hair turned white and his eyes glowed a ghostly green.

Cardin's eyes widened as Jaune transformed. "What kind of freaky semblance is that?"

Jaune glared, taking his primal stance from his bout with the Boarbatusk. "Oh what's the matter Cardin, afraid of little old me?" He taunted.

Cardin shook his head wildly before his glare returned. "Doesn't matter what tricks you have, you won't beat me!" Cardin ran towards Jaune once again, swinging his mace down towards Jaune's head. The ground exploded and a large cloud of dirt flew into the air.

"Jaune!" Blake shouted, running towards the stairs to the arena entrance, followed by Ruby, Yang, and Pyrrha. As they reached the door, the dust cleared, Cardin standing where he had, with Jaune nowhere to be found. Suddenly, two ghostly hands reached from the floor and pulled Cardin's feet into the ground.

"What the-" Cardin shouted as Jaune burst from the floor returning to tangible form, hitting Cardin square across the chin with an uppercut. Cardin flew backwards, his feet freeing from the dirt as he fell onto his back. Jaune drew his sword, pointing the tip at Cardin's throat.

"That's the match! Mr. Winchester, while you earned some strong hits against Mr. Arc, your anger caused you to lose focus. This in turn lead you to attack wildly and without any strategy, failing to first study your opponent's semblance. As for you Mr. Arc, your defense was strong, though I counted at least four points where you could have made significant strikes to Mr. Winchester's aura. However, your strategic use of your semblance gave you a significant advantage, as well as the win. Well done. That will be all for today, class dismissed!" Miss Goodwitch turned towards the class, signaling for them to leave.

The arena doors opened, and the girls rushed towards Jaune, Ruby getting there first in a trail of rose petals, tackling Jaune to the ground. "Jaune! That was INCREDIBLE!" She fawned.

Yang hoisted Jaune up by his hood, running her knuckles across his head. "Yeah Jauney, you've got to spar with me later! I've gotta experience those moves first hand!"

Blake pulled Yang off of Jaune, cocking her eyebrow. "Yang, give him a break. Jaune's already had to fight twice today! Give him a bit to recover his aura and energy." She reasoned, the brawler shrugging.

"Oh fine, Blakey, but soon Jauney! You and I will battle! It will be amazYang!" Yang grinned at her own pun, while the others remained silent.

Ruby groaned. "Yang, that was terrible. Really, really terrible. Can we go get dinner now?"

Pyrrha remained silent, watching JBRY with a strained look. She was almost saddened, not knowing whether to interject or not.

Jaune grinned at his team, before glancing towards Pyrrha. "Hey Pyrrha, would you and your team like to join us?" He grinned, still green eyes closing as he smiled.

Pyrrha blinked a few timed, before smiling genuinely. "That sounds lovely!" She waved towards Weiss, Nora, and Ren, signaling them to come with JBRY.

Blake placed a hand on Jaune's shoulder, leaning towards his ear. "Forgetting something, ghost boy?" She whispered, smirking.

Jaune flushed slightly as he summoned his powers, the white rings returning to bring him back to human form. "Oh come on, the others are getting ahead!" He grabbed Blake's hand and pulled her towards the door to the arena, not noticing the blush that crept to her cheeks.

 **A/N: Hello again all! Sorry for the delay on this chapter, had a long work week! So I've been reading the reviews, and you guys rock! I tried to work on my fight scenes this chapter, as that had been a complaint from some in chapter 2. I know they're a bit rough, but I really tried here! Also, Jaune's dream has more to it than meets the eye. This was always planned to have more importance, and will continue to come up more and more as we progress. For some notes to specific reviewers:**

 **DigitalEmperor001: Jaune's ACTUAL powers are a secret to all but Blake and Jen. As far as everyone else knows, Jaune's semblance changes his color scheme and lets him move through solid objects. They know of no other abilities, so it isn't like he was just like "Hey team, I'm a half ghost!"**

 **Matt Cyr: Just keep waiting on Jaune's past. Patience! As for Cardin, well, Cardin's an ass. He's a bully, and he saw Jaune as someone weaker than him (Obviously proven wrong, but still. Bullies.)**

 **Guest: To you who claimed that I stole Jazzberry and my concept from Coeur Al'Aran, you're a riot. While I've read some of** **Coeur Al'Aran's work, you mentioned two stories that I've NOT read. I've read One Good Turn Deserves Another, Stress Relief, and am currently reading Professor Arc. I would never steal from another author, as that's a complete insult to art everywhere.** **Coeur Al'Aran, if you're reading (which I doubt, but hey) please know that I wouldn't steal from you. I've the utmost respect for your work!**

 **A/N: Honestly, I got my concept idea while re-watching Danny Phantom and thought 'What if Jaune could do this?'. Jazzberry literally comes from a color I saw on a website of colors. It's a color, and it fit to the letters of the chosen team.**

 **Anyways guys, keep reading! I'll try to get the next chapter out sooner, so stay tuned! Review and enjoy!**


	4. Training and a Stray

Phantom of Beacon

Chapter 4:

 **A/N: So I'm skipping ahead a bit of time, just to clarify!**

In the outskirts of Vale, White Fang troops unloaded stolen shipments of Dust into a formerly abandoned warehouse. A tall man in a white coat and a bowler hat lit up a cigar, swinging his cane idly. "Come on you bunch of animals! We're on a deadline here, and certain associates of mine do _not_ like to be kept waiting, so how about we move it along?!"

A white fang member carrying a crate tripped up at Roman's shouts, spilling phials of dust all over the floor.

Roman slapped his own forehead. "Amateurs!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Blake awoke early on their first weekend, the sun just rising outside JBRY's dorm. She slipped out of her bunk and climbed up to Jaune's, shaking him awake quietly. He made to respond but she held a finger to his lips. "Shh. Jaune, get up, get dressed, and follow me."

Jaune blinked sleepily, but nodded in response. He climbed down, doing his best not to wake Ruby and Yang, the latter snoring away in her bunk. He slipped on his usual black and orange hoodie, yawning when he saw the time. _"Blake…why? Weekends are for sleeping…"_ he thought as he headed out the door.

Blake was waiting for him in the hallway, taking his hand as she lead him away from the dorms. Jaune blinked at her, stammering. "Blake, where are we going?"

"Just trust me, Jaune. It's just something I've been wanting to go do all week!" She said with a smirk, taking a right turn out of the dorms.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Blake…when you said it was something you'd wanted to do, I didn't think you meant this!" Jaune said, panting heavily.

Blake smirked again, placing her hand on Jaune's shoulder…before shoving him backwards and swinging at him with Gambol Shroud.

Jaune ducked, rolling backwards to get some ground. She hadn't allowed him his sword or gauntlets, only his abilities. Green eyes met amber as she charged at him again, keeping him on the defense.

"Jaune, fight back! I know you can do more than that, so let's see some action, ghost boy!" She taunted, firing Gambol Shroud at her partner.

He glared and turned intangible, the blade and ribbon passing right through his chest, before he took off running at Blake. His feet left the ground, flying now at high speeds at the girl. Jaune's fist began to glow green as he swung, sword meeting fist in a slight explosion.

Blake was thrown backwards, skidding several feet across the ground. She glanced up, only to see a panicked Jaune rushing towards her. Before he could get close, she fired Gambol Shroud again, snagging the ribbon around his feet, pulling him to the ground as well. "Never let your guard down!"

Jaune groaned and phased out of the ribbon again, panting. He jumped back to his feet, and after a moment, he smirked and vanished without a trace.

Blake kept at her guard, raising Gambol Shroud in defense. She glanced around and caught a cloud of dust kicked up twenty feet to her left. Switching Gambol Shroud into gun mode, she fired off three rounds that way, causing Jaune to become visible once more and duck out of the way.

As he ran, his fists began to glow once more, and he grinned. Throwing his hand out in Blake's direction, a green beam of energy fired from it towards the girl, burning the ground as it hit.

She flinched away, leaving a clone in her place, narrowly dodging the beam of ghostly energy. "Very good!" Blake grinned at her partner, signaling him to pause. "You're getting more and more control over time, and you've improved since you cut that poor bush in half before initiation."

Jaune nodded, flexing his hands. "Thanks, Blake. I feel like I've got a good grip on my intangibility now, so no more incidents with my clothes. As for the ecto-blasts and invisibility, they're getting easier, though I have some ideas about the energy."

"Oh? Please elaborate." Blake questioned.

His eyebrows rose and his eyes widened. "Well, I was thinking about my weapons and whatnot. I can obviously channel the energy through them into attacks, but I wonder if I could do more with it, like creating barriers or something?"

Blake nodded, sheathing her blade. "Well, I suppose in theory it's possible. Huntsmen and Huntresses have been working with Aura for years, some even creating constructs or channeling their aura in similar ways so what you do with your ghost powers, though with less destructive results. But for now, we should go meet up with the others." She glanced at the clock on the wall. "It's getting around the time that Ruby's been awake for about an hour, probably running around the dorm looking for us while Yang continues to sleep."

Jaune nodded and went back to human form, the usual white rings appearing around him. He wiped his brow of sweat, muscles groaning as he moved in his human form. "You know, my Aura almost seems to work better at healing me when I've gone ghost. Weird, right?"

Blake's eyebrow cocked at the blonde. "Gone ghost? Really Jaune?"

He blushed, throwing his arms out to either side, hands splayed. "Oh you know what I mean! But really though, I wonder what's going on with my Aura?"

Blake shrugged, leading him towards the cafeteria. "Honestly Jaune I'm not sure. Perhaps it's got to do with the way your Aura was unlocked, or maybe your circumstances themselves. In any case, it's something we can look into over time."

"Thanks by the way, Blake. For everything. The past few weeks, you've really helped me get a grip on all this, that, and you've covered for me when things have gone…awry." Jaune smiled, earning a grin in response.

"It's honestly been fun, Jaune. I mean, I've helped people learn about their semblances before, but this…this is something different. And I like different."

The two reached the cafeteria, heading to their usual table with PRWN. Moments later, Ruby and Yang came rushing in, the former looking far more distressed. "Jaune, Blake, there you are! Where do you two go every Saturday?! I was worried!" The redhead shouted, flailing her arms about, earning a laugh from the others.

"Ruby, relax! We were just doing some early morning training!" Jaune replied, not noticing the change in Pyrrha's demeanor.

"Training?" Pyrrha asked, emerald eyes lighting up at the thought of training with Jaune. "Surely six eyes are better than four! If you wouldn't mind, I would love to join you next time." She grinned ear to ear at the pair.

Jaune and Blake looked at each other, and then at Pyrrha. "Well, I mean…" Jaune saw Pyrrha's face fall, and he melted completely. "Sure! That sounds great, right Blake?"

Blake's face dropped slightly, but she kept her composure. "Sure Jaune, that sounds…lovely…" She whipped a book out of her bag and began to tone out the rest of the conversation. _"Seriously? This is our thing! Why can't she just mind her own team's business…"_ Blake thought/

"Hey Blake?"

She was drawn out of her thoughts by the blonde boy beside her. "Yes?"

"We were thinking about heading down to the city and meeting some of the exchange students coming for the Vytal Festival, if you'd like to join us." Jaune said, blue eyes locking with amber.

Blake pondered for a moment, before closing her book. "Why not?"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Teams JBRY and PRWN walked through the streets of Vale, chatting casually among themselves. "The Vytal Festival! Oh, this is absolutely wonderful!" Weiss chanted, smiling bigger than any of the teams had seen before.

"Weiss, I'm gonna be honest, I don't think I've ever seen you smile this much. Who knew that all it took was the Vytal Festival to thaw the Ice Queen…" Jaune said, earning a laugh from everyone but Weiss.

She glared at the blonde, smile not faltering. "Oh hush you. And besides, how could you not smile? A festival dedicated to the cultures of the world! There will be dances! Parades! A tournament! Oh, the amount of planning and organization that goes into this event is simply breathtaking!"

Yang groaned. "You know Weiss, you sure know how to take something great and make it sound really boring. Worse than Port really."

The others laughed again, causing Weiss to grow red in the face from embarrassment and frustration. "Quiet, you!"

As the teams neared the docks, Ruby plugged her nose in disgust. "Blegh, it smells like fish."

Blake grinned. "Yes, yes it does." Jaune laughed at his partner. "So Weiss, why are we here again?"

Weiss rolled her eyes at the blonde. "I've heard that students visiting from Vacuo will be arriving by ship today. And, as a representative of Beacon, I feel as though it is my solemn duty to welcome them to this fine kingdom!"

Blake rolled her eyes. "She wants to spy on the incoming transfers."

"Oh hush, you can't prove that!"

Pyrrha placed a hand on her partner's shoulder. "I think this is a grand idea! We can meet new students as well as find out some about them!"

"Hey kids, get out of here! This is a crime scene." An officer said to the teams. "Third Dust shop robbery this week…"

"Think it was the White Fang?" A second officer asked.

The first groaned. "Probably…we don't get paid enough for this."

Weiss frowned on the spot. "Hmph! The White Fang." (crossing her arms and pointing her nose in the air with her eyes closed) "What an awful bunch of degenerates!"

Blake turned and glared at her. "What's your problem?!" Her bow twitched, Jaune knowing what was about to happen.

Weiss turned and glared back. "MY problem? I don't happen to like dealing with the criminally insane!"

Jaune chirped in, trying to ease the tension. "You know, the White Fang are hardly insane. More like misguided. They're treated poorly because they're different, and from that, they lash out. While what they do is wrong, it comes from how the world treats them.

Blake looked on at her partner, reveling at his words. _"Jaune's something special…"_

Ruby nodded at Jaune, before looking at Weiss. "Jaune's right. We've got Faunus back in Patch, and I'm sure if they were mistreated for being who they are, they'd lash out too. Besides, they never caught that Torchwick guy I ran into a few months back, so maybe it was him?"

Weiss glared at the three. "That still doesn't change the fact that the White Fang are a bunch of scum. Those Faunus only know how to lie, cheat, and steal."

Nora groaned, and Ren decided enough was enough. "Weiss, you know that isn't necessarily true…"

"Hey, stop that Faunus!" A voice shouted from an incoming ship.

A blonde, monkey tailed boy jumped off the ship, sprinting down the docks. "Thanks for the ride boys! Catch ya later!" He laughed, the two officers from before rushing over.

"Hey you! Get down here this instant!" The officer demanded.

The Faunus laughed, throwing a banana peel at the man before flipping off the post he'd jumped on and began sprinting towards the streets. As he passed teams JBRY and PRWN, he winked at Blake and Yang before disappearing into the alleys.

"After him!" Weiss shouted, the two teams taking chase after the monkey tailed boy.

The two teams split, JBRY going west and PRWN going east. "Jaune, we need to cut some ground! Use your semblance!" Yang shouted.

Jaune blinked, before nodding. "Right!" The blonde kicked his ghost powers into gear, the usual white rings appearing and turning him into his alternate form. He concentrated, and then went intangible, running straight through the nearest building, catching the monkey Faunus in a tackle.

"Hey! What was that for?"

"You ran from the police!" Jaune exclaimed.

The Faunus rolled his eyes, extending his hand. "Look, you've got it all wrong! I'm from Haven! I'm a student, just came a little early! I swear, I didn't do whatever you think I did! Name's Sun by the way!"

Jaune stood staring at Sun, trying to get a read on him. "Alright fine Sun, get out of here. But you owe me one for this. And I'm Jaune."

Sun grinned, shaking Jaune's hand. "Jaune, got it! The guy with the white hair! Spooky! Anyways, gotta run!" Sun ran and jumped up off the wall, flipping onto a rooftop. "Thanks Jaune!"

The rest of JBRY caught up, PRWN in tow. "Where is he?! Did you get him, Arc?!" Weiss demanded of the ghost boy.

Jaune glanced at his team before looking at Weiss. "Sorry Weiss, he slipped through my fingers…" He lied.

Blake placed her hand on his shoulder, knowing the truth. "It's okay, Jaune. I'm sure we'll see him again."

"No! Arc, you were supposed to catch him! Now the filthy Faunus got away!" Weiss nearly screamed.

"Stop saying things like that! The way you talk, you sound no better than the people who made the White Fang do what they do in the first place!" Blake shouted back.

Weiss turned to her, fuming. "Well MAYBE they should have just learned that the world doesn't change that fast!"

"Well maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!" Blake screamed, placing her hand over her mouth, everyone but Jaune looking at her in shock. Before anyone could say another word, she ran, Jaune taking chase.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Blake walked towards the statue at the front of Beacon, looking on at the heroes of the past. Tears welling in her eyes, she reached up and removed her bow, her cat ears twitching in the night air.

"I always thought you looked better without the bow." Jaune said, appearing from the ether.

Blake turned to run again, but Jaune caught her by the shoulder.

"Blake, look at me. What you did in the past doesn't matter. It's about who you ARE that matters, and you're Blake! My partner, my friend, hell, my teacher at times. That's the Blake that means the world to me and everyone else!" Jaune smiled, reaching forward and wiping a tear from her eye. "Now come on, let's get back to the others and expl-"

Jaune was cut off as her lips pressed against his, silencing him in the night air. _"Wow…"_ he thought, as he pressed back against her, before she took his hand and ran off into the night.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Within a warehouse in the outskirts of Vale, a glowing form burst from the shadows, red eyes aflare as it roared. Roman Torchwick walked forward, twirling his cane as he stepped towards the beast. "Well well, looks like we're going to have some fun…"

 **A/N: Hey guys! Told you I'd try to get this chapter out sooner! I again tried to work on my combat scenes, and honestly I think they're getting better! I know I didn't explain more of Jaune's accident this time, but I did delve more into his powers!**

 **Nexus Bladeguard, you mentioned that his powers could be explained as a semblance. That's one reason why this time around I tried to get more into how Jaune's powers are advancing and growing. Obviously now we've seen him walk through walls, disappear, fly, and shoot ecto energy from his hands. Jaune is still learning about all that he can do, but if someone besides Blake saw all that he could do, they'd know it was something more than a semblance.**

 **So guys, it happened! After four chapters, Blake and Jaune happened, sort of, for a moment. One thing I like about Jaune is that he's genuinely kind to just about everyone he comes across, and this version of him is different. Not in the sense that he's not a good person, but he's scared of what would happen to him if all of Remnant found out what he was. Seeing how much pain Blake is in because of her past, well, it connects the two on a deeper level. That kiss was one of pain, but desire, so hey, stay tuned for more! Give some reviews, and enjoy! See you all in a few days!**


	5. Black and White

Phantom of Beacon

Chapter 5:

Jaune sat at the table, nervously drinking his hot chocolate. Blake sipped on her tea, casually eyeing the blonde sitting across from her. "Jaune…"

The boy choked on his drink, coughing excessively as his lungs burned. "B-Blake! I was wondering if you were gonna talk to me again! It's been two days, so I guess I got a bit startled, heh." He rubbed the back of his head nervously.

Blake's ears twitched behind her bow, and her face grew slightly sour. She stared at him, cocking an eyebrow. "Look Jaune, you're taking this all surprisingly well, which I very much appreciate, but forgive me if I'm a bit taken aback by it. After the war, despite being promised equality, the Faunus were subjected to discrimination and hate. Humanity still thought of us as lesser beings. And so, the White Fang rose up as the voice of our people. And I was there. I was at the front of every rally. I took part in every boycott. I actually thought we were making a difference. But I was just a youthful optimist…" She let out a sigh, looking down at the table. "Then, five years ago, our leader stepped down, and a new one took his place. A new leader, with a new way of thinking. Suddenly, our peaceful protests were being replaced with organized attacks. We were setting fire to shops that refused to serve us, hijacking cargo from companies that used Faunus labor. And the worst part was, it was working. We were being treated like equals. But not out of respect... out of fear. What I…what we did…I left when I realized that we were becoming exactly what we hated, and that we were no better than the humans that tried to control us. "

Jaune sighed, running his hand along his forearm nervously. "Blake, I can really only imagine what that was like, but I've had dreams…nightmares really about if someone found out about me, and what they would do. From how you describe it, I'd be an outcast, but…you didn't judge me. You accepted me right off the bat, even if I'm half ghost or whatever I am. You're not the kind of person anyone should be afraid of. If anything, Weiss seems like the type to fear, and if not her, at least her family then. That was a bit…much."

She nodded, still looking at the table. "The Schnee family is well known for their dealings in the Dust industry, as well as their shady side and their blatant racism, hence their hatred of the White Fang, but the Fang have no reason to steal Dust like this, they never have. I _need_ to find out who's behind this, and prove to Weiss that the Faunus aren't who she thinks. If not…then to at least prove to myself… I understand if you don't want to come with m-" She stopped when she felt Jaune's hand on top of hers.

"Blake, you really think I wouldn't go? We've been away from everyone else for days, and I haven't once attempted to drag you back. I'm here with you to HELP you, with whatever you need." He smiled at her, gripping her hand in his. "I'm gonna be here every step of the way, so I guess you're stuck with me, kitty cat."

She blushed at the nickname, smiling back. "Alright then, let's get started!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Jaune and Blake headed towards the docks, moving as quietly as possible. Blake signaled Jaune to head towards the fence around the area, but he grabbed her arm, pointing at the top. Slight arcs of electricity could be seen sparking along the metal tips.

"Well this could prove a problem. Looks like we need to find a way around, maybe something we can jump over…" Blake started.

Jaune shook his head, smirking slightly. "Blake, are you forgetting something? Ghost powers!"

"No Jaune, I didn't forget, but that only gets you through. I'll still have to-"

"Blake, just trust me, I've got an idea." The white rings appeared, turning Jaune into his ghost form. He extended his hand to her, green eyes meeting amber.

She tentatively took his hand after a moment, and then felt a chill run through her spine. Jaune's body went intangible, his body fading to a pale blue, and with him after a moment went Blake, who jumped in surprise. The two walked through the fence, Jaune returning them to a tangible form.

"Jaune, when did you-"

"Honestly, just now. Guess this is something we can work with!"

Blake smirked at him, placing a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks again for being here. Now come on, let's find out who's really behind this!" She ran towards a warehouse, Jaune in tow.

The pair climbed up a ladder and then crawled across the rooftop, peering down onto the yard. The wind began to blow, and from above, a Bullhead's searchlights flashed around for a landing spot, descending in the middle of the cargo containers and extending a ramp for a black hooded individual with a metallic fanged mask to come out of.

"Oh no…" Blake cringed.

Jaune looked at her. "Is…is it them?"

"Yes…it's _them_."

Jaune placed a hand on her shoulder. "You really thought it wasn't them, didn't you?"

Blake frowned, looking away. "No…I think that deep down I knew, but I didn't want to be right.

"Hey! What's the holdup!?" Roman Torchwick stepped out of the warehouse, twirling his cane as he eyed the White Fang members. "We're not exactly the most inconspicuous bunch of thieves at the moment, so why don't you _animals_ try to pick up the pace?"

Blake puled away from Jaune, arming Gambol Shroud. "This isn't right. The White Fang would _never_ work with a Human. Especially not one like that." She stood, running towards the edge of the roof.

"Blake, what are you doing?!" Jaune whispered as loudly as he could, but she was gone.

Roman kicked a crate that had been dropped. "Oh come on now! Send in a bunch of filthy animals to do a hum-" He was cut off as Blake appeared from behind him, holding her sword to his throat. "Oh what the f-"

Blake tightened her grip around Roman, pressing the blade closer as she let her bow go loose, freeing her cat ears. "Quiet! Brothers of the White Fang, why are you aiding this scum?!"

The White Fang members looked on in shock, some lowering their weapons. Roman laughed at Blake, causing her grip to tighten. "Whoah there little lady, didn't you get the memo? The White Fang and I are going in on a joint business venture together!"

Blake's grip faltered slightly, her hands trembling slightly. "Tell me what it is, or I'll end your little operation." She pressed the blade to his throat, hand shaking.

From above, the roar of multiple Bullheads sounded, Blake looking up in shock. Roman, taking notice of her distraction, fired his cane at the ground, sending her flying.

Blake, dazed but mostly unharmed rolled and ran from Roman, dodging the explosive blasts he sent her way. The blasts exploded against the cargo behind her as she ran and hid behind a tower of shipping containers.

Roman stepped forward, White Fang members behind him, searching for Blake. "Here kitty kitty…Oof!"

Jaune leaped down from the building, kicking Roman in the chest and knocking him back. He glared at Roman, green eyes glowing against the night. "Leave her alone." His gauntlets went into battle mode, covering his forearms.

"Oh look, Black and White tonight! You two are a few keys short of a piano, aren't ya kid?" Roman looked around at the docile White Fang members. "Well? Get him."

The Fang members charged at the ghost boy, bearing swords and clubs. One swung at Jaune who blocked with his left gauntlet before he delivered a blow to the Faunus' gut. The Fang member dropped to the ground in pain before Jaune kicked him in the face, knocking him out.

A second and third Fang member ran towards Jaune simultaneously. Jaune's hands glowed green before firing ecto-energy blasts at them, sending them flying into shipping containers.

Roman's eyes widened as he armed his cane. "What the hell are you?!" He fired at Jaune, the explosive blast encompassing Jaune. "There we go, freak taken care of."

The smoke cleared, revealing a green, domed shield glowing around Jaune. "What the…did I make this?" Jaune asked aloud, looking around at the energy around him.

"Die you freak!" Roman fired three more blasts, each exploding against the shield, the last causing it to falter and fade.

From above, Blake dove down in front of Jaune, rushing at Roman. "He's mine!" She shouted, becoming a blur of afterimages as she slashed both blades at Roman, who dodged and deflected each would-be hit with his cane at unbelievable speeds.

She continued to dash, hop over, and slide around Roman to try and find a weak spot, but he deflected each attack, almost with ease. Sliding around her, he landed a few hits on her until he hit her with a heavy strike, sending her to the ground.

Before Roman could strike again, Jaune rushed forward, slashing at Roman with his claws, now glowing with ecto-energy, becoming ghostly arcs of offense. Roman deflected each attack, his weapon taking damage with each blow. Jaune fired a small blast at Roman after an attack, stunning him long enough for Blake to rush in and strike Roman across the chest, sending him flying into a shipping container.

Roman pulled himself back up, eyes lit with fury. "That's it kiddies! The gloves come off, now! Hey, big ugly! Come play with our new friends!" He shot a blast at a container hanging from above, dropping it down in front of Jaune and Blake.

A roar was heard from inside, and the doors exploded open, revealing a white and black beast, eyes glowing red. The beast had a white glow around it, and its claws sank deep into the ground. It looked towards the pair, and it roared when it saw Jaune, charging at him.

Jaune ran forwards, swinging at the beast, only to take a hit as it swung its claws at him. He was sent flying, turning himself intangible and flying through several crates. "That all you got?!" Jaune flew back, firing blasts of ecto-energy, doing little more than stunning it.

Blake took the chance to jump at the beast, using afterimages again and again to dodge its attacks, swiping at it, hindering it slightly until it swung its massive paw at her, knocking her into a crate, leaving a massive dent in the steel side. A flash of black energy glowed around Blake and broke, her aura failing.

The beast ran towards her, smelling her blood in the air. From above, Jaune flew down, eyes glowing a menacing green. "Get away from her!" He screamed, his scream growing louder and louder until it was deafening, sending waves of ecto-energy at the beast. It howled in pain as it was thrown backwards into the side of the warehouse, trembling in agony. Jaune's eyes began to turn blue, and his hair began to turn back to its normal blonde as he sent every ounce of power into his wailing.

Dropping to his knees, Jaune's form shifted back to human. He looked up, sweat dripping down his face as he tried to eye the beast. Off to the side, it was beginning to rise again, looking at Jaune almost quizzically.

At one of the Bullheads, Roman rushed inside, taking a briefcase of Dust with him. "These kids just keep getting weirder! Get me out of here! She's not gonna be happy about this. Ugly, scram!" The Bullhead took off, heading out of the city into the night sky.

"Hey!" Ruby shouted from a nearby rooftop, Crescent Rose in hand. She slammed it down into the roof, taking aim at the beast. It stood, roaring at her before Yang jumped down from above and fired Ember Celica into its face.

The beast, stunned, looked at Team JBRY once more before turning intangible and fading into the ground.

Blake slowly stood, clutching her side. "Is it…is it gone?" She asked before falling back to her knees in pain. Yang rushed to her side, hoisting her back up and helping her over to a crate to sit on. Ruby dashed down from her rooftop to Jaune, trying to pull him up to no avail.

Sirens roared and lights flashed as the Vale police arrived on the scene, officers exiting vehicles with guns at the ready. The four teens raised their hands in defense and innocence as they explained what happened.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"So Torchwick and the White Fang are in business together? That's just great." An officer finished writing down the information and walked away from JBRY to the teachers, Professors Ozpin and Goodwitch having been brought to the scene.

"Jaune!"

He glanced over to see Pyrrha and the rest of PRWN rushing towards them. Before he could speak, he was wrapped in a hug by the redhead, her body shaking.

" _Well this is weird…"_ he thought as his bones were crushed by the spartan.

"I thought something happened to you! That you'd been taken, or worse!" She sobbed.

Ren placed a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Jaune, are you and Blake alright? What happened?"

Blake stood, her side now covered in bandages. She walked towards PRWN and Jaune slowly, locking eyes with Weiss. "Weiss, what I did before I knew you all isn't who I am n-"

"Stop." Weiss ordered, a fierce look in her eyes.

Blake froze in place, staring at the white haired girl. Jaune broke away from Pyrrha and placed a hand on Blake's shoulder.

"You said you aren't with them anymore…and I am willing to believe that after your actions here tonight." Nora elbowed her in the ribs, the ginger haired girl receiving a glare. "And I'm sorry for what I said before. I was out of line, and I've no one to blame but myself."

Blake slowly smiled, nodding at Weiss. "Apology accepted, Weiss. Just know that I would never do something like this…ever."

"We all know that, Blakey! Now can we please get out of here?" Yang asked, entering the fray of the conversation.

"I think that would be wise for all of you." Professor Ozpin stated, stepping towards the two teams. "Jaune, Blake, you two fought admirably tonight, and your efforts resulted in valuable knowledge for the protection of the kingdom. While I praise your findings, I also caution restraint. You are all still in training, and men like Roman Torchwick are dangerous. Please, next time call for backup instead of rushing in alone."

Jaune and Blake nodded in response as Professor Goodwitch stepped towards them. "Good. Now all of you into the Bullheads. You've been allowed a day off tomorrow to recuperate, and I advise you to use it wisely." She and Ozpin walked back to the officers to finish up for the evening.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Jaune yawned as JBRY entered their dorm, falling onto his bed with a loud 'thud'. He kicked his shoes off, slowly drifting into sleep. Just before he was out…

"Hey Jaune…how did you do that thing with your voice at the docks? I mean you sent that thing flying! I thought you could just go through things, not…that! And how did it just disappear into the ground like that?" Ruby half shouted.

Yang crossed her arms in agreement, stepping towards the blonde boy. "Yeah, Jauney! You got some kind of secret or something?"

Jaune's eyes widened, darting back and forth between Yang and Ruby. "Well…I…"

"Enough. If Jaune want's to explain himself, let him do it on his terms, not yours. It's his secret to tell, not yours to pressure out of him." She smiled at him softly, catching him as he mouthed 'thank you' at her.

Yang frowned before hopping onto her bed. "Fiiiiine. But Jaune, really, when you're ready, you know you can trust us, right? We're your friends too."

He nodded, smiling slightly. "I promise you both…Yang…Ruby…I'll explain everything soon enough, but not tonight. All I want to do right now is sleep."

"Agreed." Blake said before sliding into her own bed.

Jaune drifted into sleep within minutes, the others still casually chatting about the evening and what they'd seen. As he began to dream, Jaune's mind was filled with thoughts of the beast that attacked them, he remembered a discussion at the lab just before the explosion. _"Spectral Grimm are also known as Omegas, existing only in legend. Opposite to Alphas, the Omegas exist only in this other world. When we break down this barrier, we should be able to study them, maybe finding a way to use the Omegas to end the Grimm once and for all."_

"Jaune?" Blake asked, climbing up into his bunk. Seeing him asleep, Blake placed a kiss on his forehead before curling up next to him. "Night, Ghost Boy." She smiled before drifting off herself.

 **A/N: Wow guys, nearly 3k on this chapter! It was a doozy! Had some heavy combat, which is as always something I'm improving on in my writing. I love that people started renaming this ship for this story, with BlackSpectre being my favorite as of yet! Jaune's powers are growing with every encounter he has, with that little Ghostly Wail tease during the battle with the Omega being just a taste of what's yet to come.**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: You are a loyal reader and reviewer, offering advice and questions that further help me in getting the meat of this story in, and I truly appreciate that. As for Roman, he obviously knows something/has some sort of control over that Omega, so he may know more that it seems about this spectral realm.**

 **Guys, I know some of you are hoping for a harem, but I don't see this story turning out that way at the moment. The KnightShade/BlackSpectre is going strong, and I'm enjoying the development of that, but hey, that's romance for ya.**

 **All in all I really appreciate each and every one of you for the reviews, favorites, follows, and more of not just this story, but me as an author on the site. You guys are awesome, and I hope to continue to bring you all entertainment with this story. Stay tuned, and I'll see you all in a few days! Send in those reviews!**


	6. Best Day Ever

Phantom of Beacon

Jaune slowly blinked awake, stretching his legs with satisfying pops from his knees and ankles. He rolled onto his right side towards the wall, hoping for a bit more sleep when he saw the bow clad girl laying next to him, sleeping peacefully. _"Blake? When did she…she looks so cute when she's asleep."_ He thought, placing a hand on her head behind her bow, slowly running his fingers behind her ear. "So soft…" He said aloud.

Blake's head turned towards his hands, a smirk on her face. "You know, I don't let just anyone touch my ears, Jaune. But I guess I can let it slide this time."

Jaune nearly jumped back in surprise, but felt her hand on his shoulder. "Relax, Ghost Boy. Don't want Ruby and Yang waking up and catching us like this, right?" Blake turned towards the wall, pressing her body closer to Jaune's. "But it's a day off, and those two could sleep forever, so maybe just a few more minutes?" She asked, feeling a nod against her head as she drifted back to sleep.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"What do you mean you LOST the Omega?!"

Roman backed away from the woman in fear, holding his cane up in defense. "Easy there! I never said lost, just…misplaced…ma'am!"

The woman stepped forward, her heels clicking like glass on the stone floor. Her right eye gleamed with fire, sending Roman back even further. "I specifically told you not to lose it, and now it's gone to Oum knows where. This is most…unsatisfactory, Roman. With an Omega we could attract more, and maybe even cause a merge." She let out an annoyed sigh. "No matter, you'll just have to find another. It's nearly time to enact phase two of the plan. Tell Taurus to bring the White Fang to the warehouse."

"Yes ma'am…Cinder." Roman replied, shivering as she walked off. "Ghosts, Maidens…what's next?"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Jaune jumped as his alarm blared from his scroll, waking both Yang and Ruby. He yelped, turning to cover Blake only to discover no one at his side. Turning back, Yang and Ruby looked on at him questioningly.

"Everything okay there, Jauney? Not hiding anything are ya?" Yang crossed her arms over her chest, Jaune's eyes falling there for only a moment before he met her eyes, blushing.

"Ev-everything's fine! Nothing to hide at all! Not me!" He caught the sly grin on Yang's face and blushed further.

"See something you like?" Yang continued to smirk and began to laugh at Jaune's flustered state.

The sound of the bathroom door opening stopped the laughter, Blake stepping into the room with a towel over her head. "Yang, that's enough. Leave him alone before he turns into a tomato." She smirked, Yang and Ruby busting out in laughter as Jaune grumbled something inaudible. Blake sent him a knowing look, as if to say 'Don't worry, I know where your emotions are'.

As their laughter died down, Ruby looked up at Jaune. "So Jaune, I was thinking maybe we could get some training in today? You could show us all those cool things from yesterday!"

Jaune rubbed the back of his head, looking down at his bed. "Ruby, a lot of what I did yesterday…I can't really explain. Even what I could explain is a bit…weird at best." He looked at Blake, getting a nod as if to say 'you can trust them'. "I guess to put it simply...I was inside an experimental portal when it was turned on, things got out, and I got powers. We, Blake and I, thought it would be good to try to just say that my semblance was intangibility and that when I used it my hair and eyes changed colors, like Yang's eyes when she gets 'Yangry'."

Yang laughed at the joke, Ruby and Blake groaning aloud. "So you got powers? You can walk through walls, shoot things from your hands, and scream painfully loud? Sounds cool to me!"

Jaune was taken aback by Yang's reaction. "Wait…really? You think that's cool? You don't think I'm a freak!"

"Nope!" Ruby chimed in. "Jaune, so you've got weird powers, that's awesome! It's part of what makes you special!"

"Besides Jauney, just because you're different doesn't mean you're an outcast, though this does explain why you stood up to Weiss so quickly." Yang looked on at him. "So Blake knew? How long?"

Blake pulled the towel off her head, letting her dark hair fall free. "I found out during initiation after he landed. Someone isn't exactly cautious about what he says when he gets excited."

Jaune rolled his eyes. "I may have blurted out something about going ghost or something like that." He rubbed the back of his neck, grinning slightly. "But I can't let the others know. You guys are my team, and I trust all three of you, but Weiss…I know she said she's okay with Blake, but my older sister told me to be…cautious around people from Atlas."

A loud screech interrupted the teens as the intercom blared to life. "Attention all students, the students of Atlas Academy have just arrived. Please greet our guests and treat them with the level of respect that we expect from Beacon Students. That is all." The voice of Miss Goodwitch rang through the dorms, signaling a groan from Jaune.

"Just can't win lately, can ya Jaune?" Yang said, shrugging her shoulders. "Well, maybe we should go get some lunch! Cheer ourselves up and check out the competition!"

Jaune looked up, thankful for the slight change of subject. "Yang's right, we sho-"

Yang was suddenly in front of him, eyes lit up like fire. "But don't think for a second that you're off the hook on showing us all those powers. You and me are going to go at it Jaune, and I don't plan on being gentle." She winked slyly.

Blake and Jaune flushed a deep scarlet at the brawler's innuendo, and Ruby looked on as if to say 'what?'. Jaune slowly nodded, earning a grin from Yang who disappeared into the bathroom.

"So Jaune, when that thing attacked last night…what was it?" Ruby asked, pulling her hood over her uniform. "I mean, that was obviously a Grimm, but I've never seen one like it."

Blake nodded and looked at Jaune. "I don't really understand either. It had the same glow that you do when you're in your ghost form, Jaune. What was that thing?"

Jaune's face turned to a grimace as he let out a sigh. "My master called them 'Spectral' or 'Omega' Grimm, like the opposite to an Alpha."

"So if Alphas are Grimm that have lived for a long time, enough to develop further…" Yang started, having been listening from the bathroom. She walked over and sat on her bunk.

"Then Omegas are just as powerful, if not more-so. The lab workers wanted to study the Omegas, see if there was a way to either get rid of or trap all the Grimm, make the world safer. It...it failed. Well, I think it did anyway. I got out of there after the accident and then…actually I don't remember anything between then and my sister unlocking my aura."

Ruby nodded. "So this thing could have the same abilities as you? Walk through walls, disappear, fly?"

Jaune nodded, frowning. "It can definitely go intangible, and it's got some monster strength. All I know is that it definitely didn't like me."

"We'll look into everything, Jauney! Don't you worry! Team JBRY is on the case!" Yang cheered, earning a similar cheer from Ruby and an eye roll from Blake. "We can relax today, and worry tomorrow! And hey, maybe we can help you figure out your missing memories!" She stood, heading towards the door.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

A few days later, JBRY sat across from PRWN in the cafeteria, Blake absentmindedly going through some drawings and notes. Her eyes widened when Jaune popped over her shoulder. "What ya doing?"

She slammed her notebook shut, a slight scowl on her face. "Just going over notes from last semester."

Yang groaned from Jaune's right, then opened her mouth and caught a grape in her mouth from across the table.. "Lame!"

Nora giggled, flicking a few more grapes at the blonde. Yang caught them, grinning and giving Nora a thumbs up.

Ruby appeared from out of nowhere, and with an enormous heave, slammed a binder onto the table, catching everyone off guard. On the cover of the binder, everyone could see the words 'Vytal Festival Activities, Property of Weiss Schnee'. They could also see marked over that in bright, bold red a new title, 'Best Day Ever Activities', had been written over it. Ruby cleared her throat, looking around at the two teams. "Sisters... friends... Weiss."

"Hey!"

"Four score and seven minutes ago, I had a dream." Ruby continued.

Yang rolled her eyes, catching another grape in her mouth and giving Nora another thumbs up. "This ought to be good."

"Ahem! A dream that one day, the four of us will come together, as a _team_ , and have the most fun anyone has ever had... ever! Jaune even helped!" Ruby cheered.

"Did you break into my room and steal my binder?" Weiss asked, frowning.

Ruby held her hands up in defense. "I am not a crook."

Blake looked on at the younger girl in confusion. "Ruby, what are you talking about?

"I'm talking about kicking this semester off with a bang!" The reaper cheered

Yang grinned. "I always kick my semesters off…with a Yang!" Everyone groaned, minus Jaune who chuckled a bit. "Guys? Am I right?"

An apple hit Yang in the face with a "Boo!" right behind it from Nora. The ginger haired girl grinned innocently.

Jaune stood, earning glances from Yang, Blake, and Pyrrha. "Look guys, it's been a good few days and between more exchange students arriving and the tournament at the end of the year, our second semester should be awesome..but, classes start back up tomorrow! Which is why Ruby and I have taken the time to schedule a series things for us to do today, if you all are game for it."

Weiss glared from the PRWN side. "Well if Arc had anything to do with it, I don't know whether to be proud or scared of what you have in store." Yang threw an apple her way, narrowly missing her. "Hey!"

Blake frowned, moving her head back towards her notes. "I don't know. I think I might sit this one out."

Jaune placed a hand on her shoulder. "Sit out or not, I think that however we spend this last day, we should do it as a team, doing team…stuff!"

Yang pumped her fist in the air. "Yeah!" She was silenced by a pie hitting her in the face, getting in her hair.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Ahahahaha!" Nora cried from atop a tower of tables formed into a fortress shape. The rest of PRWN stood below her, each taking a combat stance. "I'm queen of the castle! I'm queen of the castle!" Nora said in a sing song voice.

Ruby stomped her foot on a table and pointed at PRWN. "Justice will be swift! Justice will be painful!" She crushed a carton of milk in her hand. "It will be delicious!"

"Yeah!" Yang, Blake, and Jaune cried from behind her.

Nora pointed down at her adversaries. "Off with their heads!" Weiss activated a glyph, sending a few watermelons flying towards the blonde. Pyrrha followed suit, throwing two melons of her own, Ren doing the same with a kick. Nora jumped down from her tower and flipped a table, sending a cascade of melons towards JBRY.

"Yang, turkey!" Jaune ordered, running forward and grabbing a baguette and swinging it like a sword.

Yang rushed forward to the turkeys and stuck her fists inside them. proceeding to block and punch the melons as they sped towards her. Blake jumped over her, swinging two baguettes like her swords to cut through more of the melons. Yang swung her fists forward, launching the turkeys at Pyrrha, who dodged, leaving Ren to take the hits.

Blake ran forwards, clashing with Pyrrha, both girls with glares that could kill. Blake jumped around the spartan, using her afterimages to dodge until Pyrrha finally swung behind her, sending Blake flying into the tables.

Ruby and Jaune slid across the tables on metal trays, skating and dodging food thrown their way. Pyrrha threw her baguette at Ruby, the latter jumping off her tray and sending the bread flying back towards PRWN. Ren jumped out of the way as the bread speared into a table behind him, gasping for breath. Ruby slammed the tray into Pyrrha, who blocked, but was thrown backwards by the force.

As Ruby and Pyrrha collided, Jaune turned intangible and flew through them, swinging his baguette at Weiss who narrowly dodged. She rushed aside and grabbed a swordfish, locking in a duel with Jaune. The heiress was merciless, stabbing and thrusting her weapon at the blonde, who either narrowly dodged or turned intangible. "Would you just get hit already?!" She yelled in frustration, swinging the fish upwards at his face.

Jaune jumped backwards, flipping and landing on the opposite side of the table. "Sorry, Ice Queen, but I'll pass!" He took a battle stance before turning intangible once again as Yang came flying from behind him, her turkey fist hitting Weiss like a freight train, sending her flying into a pillar. The force shattered the pillar, Weiss' body falling to the floor.

"Snowflake!" Nora cried, running towards the blondes in a rage. "You shall both suffer for your crimes against the ice lady!" She leaped into the air, grabbing a metal pole off the wall, snapping it from its post, and then she slammed it into a melon, creating a makeshift hammer. Nora bounced back into the air towards Jaune and Yang, the latter throwing her leader out of the way of the ginger.

Nora slammed her melon hammer into the ground, sending out a shockwave and throwing tables backwards.. Yang ducked and dodged as Nora swung, finally going in for a hit, but the melon hammer had the range and Yang was sent flying through the ceiling. The melon was crushed on impact, leaving Nora defenseless.

Blake ducked and dodged the debris from the ceiling, flipping forward and grabbed a link of sausages, whipping it around her and then towards Nora, sending the ginger girl flying backwards into a pair of soda machines.

Cans poured from the now broken machines, prompting Nora to grab and throw multiple cans at Blake, who backflipped out of the way, dodging them. Pyrrha then slammed her hand down on the ground, activating her semblance and lifting dozens of soda cans at once, sending them soaring towards Blake at blinding speeds. Though she dodged a few, Blake was eventually bombarded with exploding soda cans, taking her out of the game.

Jaune and Ruby glared towards Pyrrha and Nora, Jaune's eyes flashing green as he switched to his ghost form. "Ruby, go!" He ordered as he vanished into the floor.

Ruby rushed forward using her semblance, spinning into a spiral of roses towards Pyrrha and Nora. The pair went to dodge, but felt hands holding their ankles in place from below. They were sent spiraling, the gust picking up Ren and Weiss, as well as the remaining food. Ruby stopped short of a wall, creating a massive crater in it that PRWN slammed into, before Jaune popped out of the floor and turned himself and Ruby intangible as the barrage of food and drinks plastered them, staining the four with multiple colors of Oum knows what.

The doors slammed open as Glynda Goodwitch swung her riding crop forwards, sending the tables back into place. "Children please, do not play with your food."

Nora let out a burp, causing JBRY and PRWN to laugh with ease, then compose themselves as Goodwitch grew more and more angry until Yang fell screaming through the ceiling. Jaune and Blake burst into laughter, the latter leaning onto the blonde's shoulder for support. Grumbling, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

Ozpin stood behind her, smiling. "Let it go."

Goodwitch let out a sigh. "They're supposed to be the defenders of the world."

Ozpin readjusted his glasses. "And they will be, but right now they're still children. So why not let them play the part?" He began to walk away from Goodwitch. "After all, it isn't a role they'll have forever."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Later on, Ozpin sat in his office with Goodwitch, going over reports and information about the Vytal Festival, when the elevator beeped, and the doors slid open. A tall man clad in white stepped out, his hands behind his back in a military pose.

"Ah, James, how nice of you to join us." Ozpin stood, his hand extended.

Ironwood accepted the handshake, and then politely bowed slightly towards Goodwitch. "Oz, a pleasure to see you. And Glynda, as lovely as always."

Goodwitch rolled her eyes and walked off, leaving the two headmasters alone.

"So James, what brings you here not only so early, but also with an armada behind you?" Ozpin asked, raising his glasses slightly.

Ironwood took his militaristic stance again, looking out towards the fleet that had arrived with his academy. "Oz, what do you know about ghosts?"

 **A/N: Sorry for the wait…again! I've been running around at work dealing with problem after problem, and I've barely had time to sit down and write! But no worries, chapter 6 is here, and guys...WE HIT 50 REVIEWS! I've never had a Fic get this much of a response or following, and I'm crazy thrilled by it! I know this chapter had hardly any Blake and Jaune bits, but there were some! I don't want to rush them into being a thing just for the sake of them being a thing. They're what the youngsters would call 'talking' I guess. I tried to get a bit more into the Omegas this chapter, but I can't reveal EVERYTHING just yet, as hey, who reads the last chapter of the book without reading all the good stuff in the middle? Time for replies!**

 **LordGhostStriker: I appreciate the input, but I know where I'm going with this story and I feel like it's progressing just fine.**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: My homie, you're always on the ball with reviews and responses, always offering advice and input as usual. The Spectral Grimm are something I decided on rather than using just ghosts (Like the damn Box Ghost, as funny as that would be) to make it fit more into the universe. As you said, I'm trying not to stray TOO far from the canon, though there are some differences obviously. I once again thank you for your input, and hope you continue to enjoy this little piece of work!**

 **Duskrider: As you can see, Blake is being cautious about revealing the romance to the others, though that doesn't stop her from having her fun with our favorite blonde goofball, hence the sneaking into his bed and then being gone before Yang or Ruby could notice. As for the sub powers like Spectra or Shadow, I'm mostly sticking to Danny's powers for Jaune, though obviously the Spectral/Omega Grimm have their own abilities.**

 **NoxXelor: I caught your review last minute, but dude, it was establishment. Obviously Yang and Pyrrha still have a thing for him, but at the moment Jaune and Blake are rocking out the talking stage. Teenagers, human beings actually, flirt. It isn't like I wrote the first chapter with all the girls going and kissing him as they left. Obviously you're one of those who wants this to be a harem, but I straight up don't know how to write a harem, so I'm enjoying my ShadowSpectre (KnightShade) for the time being. Also, saying 'just saying' is kind of like saying 'no offense, but'. It makes the comment no less negative. But still, criticism is criticism, so I thank you for your input anyway. Just...stay tuned, it gets better.**

 **That's it for this one guys! Pushed just about another 3k, and this chapter was more of fun and a bit of filler to keep things progressing, but stay tuned! Next update should be within the next week, but hopefully I'll get it out sooner! Read, review, and enjoy as always!**


	7. Investigations

Phantom of Beacon

Ozpin raised an eyebrow at the general, pressing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "Ghosts? I'm afraid I don't understand the question, James."

"Ghosts, Oz. Poltergeists, specters…Omegas." Ironwood turned to Ozpin on the last word, noticing a change in the headmaster's demeanor. "You remember the stories I take it?"

Ozpin nodded. "The legend of an alternate dimension where Grimm that have lived so long fade into? Yes, James, I remember. But as far as we know, that dimension and these…Omegas are just an old hunters tale."

"What if I were to tell you that they were real? Several months ago, Atlas sponsored a project to try to break into this other dimension. We hired covertly, not giving away the true purpose of our project and not marking Atlas as responsible. All employees were paid lien under the table, and no names were given out. The night the project was to launch, there was an accident in the lab. Something destabilized the portal, and it exploded. Creatures…escaped, and some of the staff were killed. Atlas scrubbed the project, and is moving the portal to a secure location with round the clock guard." Ironwood's brow creased as he looked on at the headmaster. "Oz, I know there was a sighting of an Omega within the past few days, and I would like to ques-"

A thud echoed as Ozpin's fist hit the desk. "Absolutely not, James! My students have already been questioned by the staff and the police, and I would like for them to get back to their regular studies." He took a sip from his mug, slurping ever so slightly. "Let us not trouble them further with this. It was an ordeal, and they did all they could."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Meanwhile in the library, team JBRY sat around a table cluttered with cards and a game board bearing various pieces. Jaune and Yang look focused in on their cards, while Blake absentmindedly stares off out the window. Ruby glances at her cards for a moment before slamming her fist down on the table.

"All right!" She pointed at Yang menacingly. "Yang Xiao Long, prepare your kingdom for battle!"

Yang grinned and smacked her palm on the table, the slap echoing through the room, causing multiple "SHHHHH"s from around them. "Bring it on!"

"I deploy the Atlesian Air Fleet!" She slapped her card down on the table, grinning evilly. Yang feigned a look of shock, causing Jaune to snicker slightly. "Looks like I get to fly right over your Ursai and attack your walls directly!" She made noises like airplanes flying and bombing, pressing her hands together like a bird. "Pew pew pew!" She cheered.

"You fiend!" Yang shouted out, earning another 'Shhhhh' from a random student.

Ruby continuted, leaning back in her chair casually. "And since Atlas is part of Mantle, my repair time is only one turn! Beat that!"

"Pretty sneaky sis, but you've activated my trap card!" Yang reached for a card she had on the table. "I reveal my face down, Giant Nevermore!" Ruby's face went from a ten to about a three as she paled whiter than Weiss' hair. "If I roll a seven or higher, feather fall will slice your fleet to pieces!"

Jaune chimed in, pointing his finger at the brawler. "But, if you roll a six or lower, the Nevermore will turn on your own forces, leaving it down to me, Ruby, and Blake!"

"That's just a chance I'm willing to take!" The three glared intensely at each other while Blake just sighed aloud.

A few tables behind them, Pyrrha, Weiss, and Ren were studying as Nora slept. Ren groaned as Ruby shouted aloud.

"What! How did you roll an 8?! My poor soldiers! They had lives! Hopes! Dreams!" Ruby pouted into the table.

Yang rolled her eyes as she collected her bounty. "Eh, most of them were probably androids anyway. Atlas, right?" Yang began to throw Ruby's discarded pieces backwards towards the PRWN table, one landing near Pyrrha and the next bouncing off Weiss' head.

The heiress stomped over and slammed the discarded piece back on the JBRY table. "Do you mind?! Some of us are trying to work!"

Jaune rolled his eyes, drawing a card for his turn. "Oh lay off, Ice Queen. We're just playing a game. Besides, it's fun!"

Weiss glared at the blonde, crossing her arms. "As if someone like you could ever lead anything more than a marching band, Arc."

"Hey! I'll have you know, I'm a great leader!" Jaune defended, earning a nod from Ruby, Yang, and Blake.

"Says who, your mother?" She taunted back.

Jaune smirked and went back to his cards. "Apparently a better one than you, according to Ozpin."

Yang, Ruby, and Blake burst into laughter as Weiss turned beet red in anger, turning away in a huff.

"Sup losers? Ice Queen." Sun hopped off the top of a bookshelf.

Jaune bumped fists with Sun as Weiss uttered a 'Hey!'. "What's up, Sun?"

"Just wanted to introduce you guys to an old friend of mine. Neptune, this is everyone!" Sun dragged a blue haired teen over.

He grinned and waved a hand. "Hey guys, Neptune. And I don't think we've met before, Snow Angel." Neptune placed a hand on Weiss' shoulder.

She turned to protest, but melted at the sight of the blue haired boy. "I-I'm Weiss. It's a pleasure to meet you!" She giggled, and everyone minus Neptune deadpanned.

Neptune noticed the cards and the scattered game pieces. "Hey, aren't libraries supposed to be for reading?"

"THANK YOU!" Ren shouted, waking Nora.

"PANCAKES!"

Sun walked over to Blake, resting his hands on the table to her right. "Hey Blake, what's up?"

"Nothing. I was actually just leaving." She stood and began to walk away.

Sun ran alongside her. "Well actually there's that dan-"

"Spoken for." She left without another word, leaving the monkey Faunus stunned.

"What was that about?!" He shouted to no one in particular.

Jaune stood, gathering up the cards and game pieces. "Don't worry, Sun. We'll go talk to her. Come on guys!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Blake laid on her bunk in the JBRY dorm, tossing and turning as though she couldn't get comfortable. A click and a squeak were heard as the door swung open to reveal Jaune, Ruby, and Yang. Blake hopped off her bunk to head towards the door, when Jaune raised a hand out to her.

"Blake…stop. You've barely been eating, you don't sleep, and lately you've been antisocial and quiet." He started.

Yang shrugged. "Jaune, have you MET Blake?"

"Ignoring that, what I meant was that you've been that way around us, around _me_ , and I want to know why. So Blake, I ask you: WHAT! IS! WRONG!" On the last word, he'd begun floating in front of her with his hands by her face.

The girls were in dead silence as Jaune blushed and slowly floated back to the ground.

Blake frowned and looked at her feet. "I just, I don't understand how everyone can be so calm."

"You still thinking about Torchwick?" Ruby chimed in.

"Torchwick, the White Fang, all of it! Something _big_ is happening and no one seems to be doing anything about it!"

Yang crossed her arms, sitting on her own bunk. "Ozpin said not to worry! Between the teachers, the police, and the Huntsmen, I'm sure they should have it covered…"

"Well I'm not! They don't know Ad- the White Fang like I do!" A tear of anger fell from her eye, splashing against the ground.

Jaune placed a hand on her shoulder, pulling her into a hug. "Blake, I think I have a way to help." He whispered, earning a peck on the neck that went unnoticed to everyone but him. As the two broke apart and Blake wiped her eyes, Jaune took a more adventurous stance. "All in favor of taking matters into our own hands, tracking down Torchwick and the White Fang, AND becoming the youngest Hunters to save Vale, say aye!"

"Aye!" Ruby pumped her fist in the air, jumping up as high as she could. Yang rolled her eyes and said "I'm in!" Blake looked up at Jaune, eyes wide as she nodded and said "Aye."

"Alright, so here's what we're going to do…"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

The next day, Team JBRY rushed to their dorm after class, brushing past PRWN as quickly as possible, getting a look from Pyrrha and Weiss. Yang shut the door behind them, locking it quickly. In a matter of minutes, JBRY was changed into outfits different from their regular combat gear. Jaune stepped out of the bathroom wearing a long gray coat with a black shirt underneath. His gauntlets were worn under the sleeves, making his hands appear metallic. His sword was worn across his back, giving him an entirely new look.

"Yang like…" She drooled as Blake rolled her eyes at the brawler.

Jaune stretched, giving the new gear a test on movement. "Okay, so let's go over the plan…"

At that moment, Weiss and Pyrrha fell in through the door, the lock having jiggled loose. The pair stood, blushing at JBRY. "Are you four doing something illegal?!" Weiss accused.

Jaune shook his head. "No Weiss, and we'd rather keep this as a team affair."

"Really? That's dumb! You should always get friends involved!" Sun said from the window, hanging upside-down from a tree. The girls and Jaune took a step back as Sun flipped into the room. "Besides, that's why I brought Neptune!"

Everyone poked their heads out the window to see the aforementioned boy standing on the windowsill. "Sup? But really though, can I come in now? This is like…really high up."

Neptune was pulled into the room, and Pyrrha shut the door once again. "We want to help! I put Ren on Nora duty, so those two are out, but please, allow us to assist you!" Pyrrha pleaded.

Letting out a sigh, Jaune held up his hands in defeat. "Fine, Pyrrha and Weiss are in. Considering that Weiss has connections with her father's company, this may help us out. She and Ruby can head to the CCT to get information on recent shipments and robberies from the Schnee Dust Company, agreed?" Ruby grinned at her leader, giving him a thumbs up. Weiss rolled her eyes, but nodded in agreement.

"I'll take blue boy and cherry pie with me. I've got a friend on the shady side of town who knows _everything_ going on in Vale. Getting some information out of him should be a piece of cake!" Yang said, hitting her fists together.

Blake turned to Jaune. "The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members. If I can get in, I can hopefully find out what they're planning. Sun, you'll be with me."

Before Sun could say anything, Jaune interjected. "And I'll be following you two as backup using my _semblance_." Blake, Yang, and Ruby picked up on his stress of the word, all three nodding.

"Great! Everyone has a team, so we can meet up with Yang and the others after we're all done!" Ruby cheered.

As Weiss raised her hand to protest, she was dragged from the room by Ruby. Pyrrha, Yang, and Neptune headed to the vehicle bay for Pyrrha and Yang's bikes. Blake, Jaune, and Sun headed for the bullheads to catch a ride into Vale.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Night had fallen in Vale, with Blake, Jaune, and Sun hiding in an alleyway. Blake traced three fingers along three scratch marks on the wall. Blake turned to the pair of blondes. "This is it."

"You sure?" Sun asked, getting a glare from Blake as she removed her bow, her cat ears twitching in the night air. "You know what, I think I'll just take your word for it."

Blake handed sun a half mask in the shape of a Grimm, Jaune raising an eyebrow. "I don't get it, Blake. If you believed what you were doing was right, why did you hide who you were?"

"The masks are a symbol. Humanity wanted to make monsters out of us, so we chose to don the faces of monsters." She explained as Sun put his mask on and headed towards the entrance.

Jaune placed a hand on Blake's shoulder, looking her in the eyes. "Blake, be careful, alright?"

She nodded, taking his hand in hers for a moment. "I'll be fine, Jaune. Plus, you'll be right there in case anything goes wrong. Just stay focused and keep yourself invisible. The Faunus will know a human by scent, but may not question a half ghost scent."

Jaune nodded, turning into his ghost form. His cloak turned jet black and his shirt a bright white. "Be careful, kitty cat." He squeezed her hand for a moment before taking flight and flying through a wall of the warehouse.

She smirked before donning her mask and running after Sun.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

The couple dozen new White Fang recruits were moved to the left side of the stage as compared to the near hundred of full fledged members on the right side. A lieutenant stepped forward, raising his voice slightly,"Thank you all for coming. For those of you who are joining us for the first time tonight, allow me to introduce a very special comrade of ours! I can assure you, he is the key to obtaining what we have fought for for so long!"

The clicking of shoes signaled the crowd to look to the entrance of the stage, a white coat coming into view. A cane twirled as Roman Torchwick walked forwards, waving mockingly. "Thank you, thank you!" As he spoke, a half pink/half brunette waved from a crate behind him. "Please, hold your applause!"

The crowd went into an uproar, with one voice shouting "What's a _HUMAN_ doing here?!"

Roman rolled his eyes, pointing his cane at her. "I'm glad you asked, "Deerie"! Now, I'll be the first to admit, humans... are the worst." He pointed at himself smugly. "Case in point. So, I understand why you would like to see us all locked away, or, better yet, killed!"

Sun looked at Blake, raising an eyebrow. "Is he going somewhere with this?"

"But, before the claws come out, I'd like to mention the fact that you and I all have a common enemy: the ones in control, the people pulling the strings, the dirty, rotten humans that run our kingdoms!" The crowd began to change their tune and began agreeing with him. "Government, military, even the schools: they're all to blame for your lot in life!" Blake and Sun shared a look, before Blake looked to the ceiling, finding the green eyes she was looking for. "And they're all pests that need to be dealt with! Fortunately, I'm the best exterminator around... No offense to any rodents in the room." Roman snapped his fingers, a curtain behind him falling to reveal a mech suit at least three stories tall.

Sun's eyes widened under his mask. "Where did he get that thing?!"

Roman continued as the crowd cheered and whistled. "As some of you may have heard, this right here…" He tapped the giant mech. "...is Atlas' newest defense against all the scary things in the world. And thanks to my "employer", we've managed to snag a few before they, uh, "hit the shelves". Now, many of your brothers have already moved down to our new operation in the southeast. If you'd rather stay within the city, that's fine... But if you're truly ready to fight for what you believe in, this is the arsenal I can provide you. Any questions? Good! Now will you all please come forward to join up!"

Blake and Sun exchanged a glance as if to say 'uh oh'. From the rafters, Jaune had the same look on his face.

The recruits began to walk forwards, Blake and Sun following the crowd, gaining the attention of Torchwick. "He sees us…" Sun said as his walk became more robotic, letting out a sheepish wave.

"He can't see in the dark!" Blake unsheathed Gambol Shroud, transforming it into a pistol. She shot at the power box on the wall, sending the building into a blackout.

Roman shouted from the darkness of the stage. "Don't let them get away!"

"Sun, the window!" Blake shouted.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Yang groaned as her group exited the nightclub. "Well that was a waste of time…"

"I'm not so sure, Yang." Pyrrha chimed in. "We now know that Torchwick is using only the White Fang for his soldiers, so other human criminals are being kept out of it."

"Yeah, but-" Yang was cut off by her scroll ringing on a group call. She flipped it open placing it on speaker. "Blake, what's going o-"

"Everyone, we need-" Blake started.

"HELLLLLLLP!" Sun screamed. "It's that Torchwick guy! He's got a robot, and its big! He's inside it! Well, it didn't eat him, but he's like, controlling it or something!"

Jaune piped in from his com piece. "Everyone, I'm right behind them! There's White Fang soldiers chasing after us! Pyrrha, Weiss, can you handle them?"

"We'll take care of it!" Pyrrha shouted, taking off towards Weiss' coordinates.

Neptune piped up from the back of Yang's motorcycle. "How close do you think they are?"

Just then, Blake and Sun leaped from a nearby rooftop, heading towards the freeway with Torchwick right behind them.

"I think that was them…"

Yang groaned, revving up the engine. "Yeah, I got it!" She took off towards them, taking notice of Jaune flying right behind them.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Blake and Sun jumped from car to car, Torchwick smashing through all in his path. "Whoah!" Sun shouted, continuing to bounce along the cars.

Yang and Neptune sped along, weaving through the wrecked cars. "We've got to slow it down!" Yang shouted.

"Got it!" Neptune rose up, grabbing his gun off his back, firing off a few rounds into Torchwick's mech before flipping it into pike mode and leaping off the bike, stabbing the blade into the back of the mech.

Torchwick thrashed about, trying to throw Neptune loose. "Neptune, hang on!" Sun shouted, clapping his hands together. Two energy clones appeared, rushing towards the mech and exploding on impact. Sun leaped towards the mech with his gunchucks, but Torchwick threw Neptune free right into Sun, and the two fell off the side of the freeway.

"Blake, I'm in position!" Jaune shouted over the com. He landed in front of the charging mech, hands in a primal stance. The mech continued to charge towards him before Jaune slammed his hands on the bridge, turning it intangible, causing the mech to fall to the ground below.

Ruby, already in position had Crescent Rose out in scythe form, shortly being joined by the rest of JBRY.

The mech stood back up, pointing its guns towards the team.

"Phantom Flame!" Jaune shouted, Blake and Ruby leaping backwards. Jaune created a shield of energy above him as Yang leaped into the air, slamming her fists down on the shield as the energy exploded, creating a green mist in the area.

Roman activated the mech's laser sensors to make up for the loss of sight, but it barely caught the afterimage of Blake and narrowly missed Yang rushing past. A gun managed to fire at the area between Blake and Yang, but out from the blast came Ruby, who slashed at the metal with her blade, causing it to falter.

"Black Specter!" Jaune shouted, drawing his sword and charging it with energy. Blake joined him, the pair each attacking the feet. Jaune jumped up and slashed at the cockpit before turning intangible to dodge an attack. Roman lifted the Paladin's foot to crush Blake, but Jaune grabbed her, flying away from the mech. Roman growled and fired off multiple missiles, but Jaune swerved around each before one came right at him. He turned intangible and brought himself and Blake underground as the explosion struck.

The pair emerged, Jaune throwing Blake forwards. "Black Widow!" He shouted as Ruby shot herself forwards and cut at the robot's legs. She turned towards Blake the pair aiming towards at the giant metal feet of the mech. They both rushed forwards and attacked simultaneously, circling around the Paladin with each strike until they both launched themselves into the air and came down together on the shoulder, cutting off the left arm entirely.

Before Jaune could shout out another attack, Yang flew out of nowhere, landing on the back of the mech and began unloading her gauntlets into its back.

Roman growled as he was tossed around the inside of the cabin, but managed to move the mech crashing backwards through two pillars before he transformed the mech's arm into a large hand, striking Yang and sending her flying through another pillar.

"Yang!" Blake and Jaune shouted.

Ruby grinned at the pair. "Don't worry! With each hit she gets stronger, and she uses that power to fight back! That's what makes her special! That's her semblance!"

Yang slowly got back on her feet, her hair burning a brilliant white as she clenched her fists. Sensing victory, Roman threw a punch at her, but the brawler caught it in her left hand, the ground cracking beneath her. Her eyes blazed red with rage as she smashed her right fist into the second arm, shattering it under her force.

Roman kicked Yang aside, the blonde flying through the air. "Dark Dragon!" Jaune ordered from the side as Blake launched her ribbon towards Yang, swinging her towards the mech. Roman jumped backwards, the mech still having full use of its legs.

"Ruby, we need to slow it down!" He charged Crescent Rose with energy causing it to glow a ghostly green. "Spectral reaper!" He grabbed her and flew into the air, spinning her around and launching her towards the mech. Just as he threw, she activated her semblance, spiraling in a cloud of rose petals at the metal monstrosity. She slashed through the right leg and the machine fell on its side, just as Yang was launched towards the mech.

Her fist connected, shattering the machine into hundreds of pieces. Roman was thrown across the ground and began to skid until he crashed into a pillar. "Just got this thing cleaned!" He said as he began to dust off his coat.

Yang frowned and fired off a round at the thief before the pink/brown haired girl from before appeared and blocked the shot with her parasol, smirking evilly towards JBRY.

"Ladies, Ghost boy, always a pleasure! Neo, if you would?" Roman said as the Neo bowed towards the girls, freezing in place.

Yang ran forwards, slamming her fist into the parasol, only for Neo and Roman to shatter like glass, having long fled. "Guess he got a new henchman."

"Yeah, and she can teleport or something. And here I thought my powers were crazy…but hey, that's a semblance for you." Jaune said, scratching the back of his head.

Blake nodded. "Jaune, a semblance tends to be one thing, be it afterimages for me, damage absorption/powering up for Yang, speed for Ruby, or even teleportation like that girl. Your powers grant you so many abilities, it would be hard to simply classify your powers as just a semblance. They…they're something more, Jaune."

He nodded before looking around in distress. "Uh guys…where are Sun and Neptune?"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Sun and Neptune sat eating bowls of noodles, their weapons sitting at their sides. "You think they'll be okay?" Sun asked as he slurped up a few noodles.

"Oh don't worry, they'll be fine!" Neptune said as he grabbed a piece of meat from his bowl.

 **A/N: There we go everyone! A 4k chapter! I busted my butt on this one, and I'm honestly pretty proud of it! Obviously I was able to play off the canon for the fight a bit, but I tried to work in a few things of my own! I'm glad most of you are enjoying this, giving feedback and helping me out, so on to reviews!**

 **Jack Lycan: Well, all I can say it keep reading and find out! Haha, but I'm glad you're enjoying things.**

 **Dieter17: Another review of someone telling me that I'm going too fast, especially when you left a review on chapter one. Realize that there are now 6 more chapters than just that initial one, so please, don't judge a story by the first chapter alone. I have a solid plan for this story.**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: I will continue to make you feel all gross and fuzzy with my Knightshade fever thank you very much! :D You've hit the nail on the head with Ironwood just about, as he really is the 'paved with good intentions' character. Gonna have to wait a bit more for his part of the story to really take shape, but glad you agree on that. As for the overshadowing bit…stay tuned ^.^ You're the loyalest of loyal reviewers, and mah boi. Thank you!**

 **NoxXelor: So the first chapter implied a bit? They're teenagers. If I was in high school and my pants dropped in front of three girls, lord knows how they would react. Pyrrha would be a bit flushed, Blake probably enjoyed, and Weiss well, Weiss is Weiss. Girls having a positive reaction to a pantsless male does not instantly mean Harem Fic.**

 **Anyways everyone (I feel like I always end like this), this was chapter 7! Action packed, plot moving, and fun! Hope you all enjoyed, so stay tuned for chapter 8! In the meantime, review!**


	8. Burning the Candle

Phantom of Beacon

Ruby and Jaune sat at a table in the ballroom, looking slightly more bummed than usual when their solitude was interrupted by Weiss slapping down two pieces of fabric on the tabletop. She looked at the pair excitedly, only earning a deer in the headlights look from Ruby and a raised eyebrow from Jaune. "I need you to pick a tablecloth! The color! Which one do you like better?"

Jaune blinked a few times before scratching his head. "Weiss…aren't they both the same shade of white?" He asked. Ruby nodded in agreement as Weiss let out a groan.

"You dolt! This one is Glacier and this one is Frost! Ugh, why did I even ask you, you're hopeless, Arc." She walked off in a huff, Ruby and Jaune laughing behind her.

Yang and Nora entered, each carrying a speaker, setting one at either end of the stage with a loud 'THUD'. Jaune and Ruby bounced slightly when the speakers hit the ground, shaking the two from their laughing.

Yang grinned as she walked over to the two, crossing her arms over her chest. "So Ruby, have you picked out a dress yes? And what about you loverboy? Got a suit ready to charm all of us eager young ladies?" She teased, winking at him.

"Yang…what's the point of the dance if we can't even get Blake to go?" Ruby groaned into the table.

Jaune patted her on the shoulder. "Ruby, don't worry, maybe I can ta-"

"Weiss! I thought we agreed: no doilies!" Yang shouted over him, running towards the heiress.

Weiss held her hand flat out to the brawler. "And we ALSO agreed that if I don't get doilies, you don't get fog machines! They're comple-"

The door to the ballroom creaked open, Sun and Neptune entering. "The dance is gonna have fog machines?" Neptune said as he walked over to Weiss.

The heiress blushed, twirling her finger in her ponytail. "We were thinking about it…"

"That's pretty cool, maybe I'll see you there?" He half asked, Weiss nodding in agreement as her eyes lit up.

Sun walked over to Jaune, bumping fists with his fellow blonde. "So Jaune, what's the dress code for this thing?" Neptune's palm met his face at his partner's lack of class.

"At least wear a tie, Sun. I figure if the girls are dressing up, we may as well look the part too." Jaune answered honestly, earning a nod from Yang.

"That's right monkey boy! I'm gonna be turning heads tomorrow, so you all better match!" She grinned, crossing her arms once more.

Sun rolled his eyes. "Fine. Totally different from Vacuo, but fine. What about Blake? Is she being all…Blake-y?"

"Yeah, I was gonna go talk to her in a bi-" Jaune started.

Yang placed her hand on his shoulder. "Actually, Jaune, why don't we both go talk to her? I need to talk to you about something anyway." Jaune blinked at her with his mouth open. "Just…hear me out, Jauney."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Jaune and Yang walked through the halls toward the library, Yang trailing a bit behind her leader. "Yang, you said you needed to talk to me about something?"

"Yep! Though I'm not exactly sure how to put this gently…" The brawler trailed off.

Jaune stopped, looking her in the eyes. "Yang, whatever it is, you can tell me! We're teammates, friends, I've go-" He was silenced by a soft feeling on his lips. _"Is she…"_ Jaune blinked a few times, just to make sure what he was seeing was real.

Yang had him pressed against the wall, her lips pressed against his. After a few moments, she pulled back, seeing a shocked and awed Jaune in front of her. "Jaune…I know about you and Blake."

Jaune's eyes widened as he stared at her. "You do? But how? We were so careful!"

Yang rolled her eyes, smiling slightly. "So the other night when I woke up to get water and saw Blake climb into your bed and kiss you, that was just a dream then, _right?_ " She said sarcastically.

"I…you…no that happened…" Jaune looked at the floor sheepishly, secret exposed.

"Jaune, I'm not judging either of you, though I noticed there was no public label on it. So I was _hoping_ that you'd give me a fair shot as well." She half asked, twirling her finger in her hair.

Jaune was at a loss, staring at the floor in shock. _"Yang wants a shot with…me? I mean I know Blake and I haven't become official yet…but…"_

"You don't have to answer right now, Jaune. Just think about it, okay?" She asked.

He looked back at her, azure meeting lilac. "I think I can do that, Yang."

She grinned, taking his hand and pulling him towards the library. "Come on, Jauney. I have an idea!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Blake sat at one of the library tables with a holographic screen in front of her. Her eyes looked more sleep-deprived than ever, barely focusing on what she's saw... until a small, bright red light appeared on her screen. It moved up and down, Blake's eyes following it down to her hand, then it disappeared entirely. She looked behind herself, irritated, but saw no one walking around her. Shrugging, she went back to researching Torchwick and the Fang on the computer, but the red light reappeared on the screen, moving around in circles. Blake slammed her fist on the table, earning a 'SHHH' as always. She stood up to leave and saw the light on the floor, following it blindly through shelves of books, trying to stomp on it until the dot disappeared around the corner. Blake followed, only for her to bump, shocked and shaken out of her more cat instincts right into Yang.

"Helloooooo! We need to talk." She grabbed Blake's arm and dragged her to an empty classroom where Jaune was waiting.

Jaune sat on the desk at the front of the room, arms crossed over his coat. "Have a seat, Blake." She moved her hand to protest until Jaune's eyes flashed green. "I said sit down, Blake…please."

She sat at a desk, attention elsewhere. Her hair was disheveled and her eyes continued to look more and more exhausted. "Look you two, I'm fine, so if you're going to tell me to stop, th-"

Yang hopped up on the desk with Jaune, sunlight shining on her through the window. "Blake, we don't want you to stop. We want you to slow down."

"I don't have the time or luxury to slow down!"

Jaune jumped to his feet, glaring at her. "It isn't a luxury! It's a necessity! Blake, when was the last time you ate? The last time you slept, took a shower?"

"Jaune, that doesn't matter! The necessity is stopping Torchwick!" Blake shouted back, amber eyes scowling at her leader.

Yang slammed her palm down on the desk, startling both her teammates. "And we're GOING to, but first, you're going to listen to what I have to say."

Blake rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, looking out the window. "Fine."

Yang ushered for Jaune to relax, the blonde boy taking a leaning stance against the wall. "Ruby and I grew up in Patch, an island off the coast of Vale. Our parents were Huntsmen. Our dad taught at Signal, and our mom took on missions around the kingdom. Her name was Summer Rose, and she was, like... Super-Mom: Baker of cookies and slayer of giant monsters. And then... one day she left for a mission and never came back." She paused, looking down at the floor. "It was tough. Ruby was really torn up, but... I think she was still too young to really get what was going on, y'know? And my dad just kind of... shut down. It wasn't long before I learned why. Summer wasn't the first love he lost; she was the second. The first... was my mom." Blake and Jaune both bolted to attention, eyes wide in shock. "He wouldn't tell me everything, but I learned that the two of them had been on a team together with Summer and Qrow, and that she'd left me with him right after I was born. No one had seen her since."

Blake glanced at Jaune before looking back at Yang. "Yang…why did she leave you?"

"That's the million lien question actually. Why?" She hopped up and walked over to the blackboard. "I didn't know, and for so long I just sat wondering. But one day, I found a clue. It was so stupid, thinking back on it, but I thought I could find her. So one day, I loaded Ruby into a wagon and set off after Dad left that day. We wandered for hours…I had cuts and bruises…I was exhausted, but I just couldn't stop. After what felt like forever, we finally found the barn that I thought had an answer or two, but all I saw were piercing red eyes. There we were, a sleeping toddler and a little girl too tired to even call for help…but just our luck, our uncle showed up just in time. My stubbornness should have gotten us killed that night…" Yang turned and looked towards Jaune, signaling him over.

Blake looked up at the blondes, eyes weary. "Yang…I'm sorry that happened to you, and I understand what you're trying to tell me, but this is different. I'm not a child, and this isn't just a search for answers! I can't just-"

Yang's fist hit the blackboard, chalk dust shooting out like a cloud into the air. "I told you: I'm not telling you to stop! I haven't! To this day, I still want to know what happened to my mother and why she left me, but I'll _never_ let that search control me. We're going to find the answers we're looking for, Blake. But if we destroy ourselves in the process, what good are we?" Jaune placed a hand on her shoulder, facing away from Blake.

"You two don't understan-"

Jaune and Yang turned towards their teammate simultaneously, green and red eyes flashing. "No YOU don't understand!" They both shouted.

"Blake, if Torchwick walked through that door right now, what would you do?" Jaune asked, eyes glowing their ghostly green.

Blake stood from her desk, walking over to the blondes. "I'd fight him!"

"You'd lose!" Yang shoved Blake backwards, the latter stumbling slightly.

"I can stop him!" Blake shouted as she got her footing back.

Yang shoved Blake again, knocking her back into the desk. "You can't even stop me!"

"And what if the Omega showed back up! That thing tossed us around like we were flies! What would you do if my powers failed me again, or you were alone?!"

Blake moved to protest, but found herself wrapped in a hug by Yang. "We aren't asking you to stop, but please…get some rest?" She pulled back and motioned for Jaune to join the hug. "Not just for you, but for the people you care about. And hey, if you feel like coming tomorrow, maybe I could step away from Jaune and give you a dance or two." Yang winked at the two before sauntering off.

"Jaune…what did she mean by that?" Blake raised her eyebrow at her partner.

Jaune paled, rubbing the back of his head. "What? Oh! Well she…oh look at the time! I have to go help Sun with that…thing!" He turned intangible and disappeared into the ground.

"...Dork…" Blake muttered before yawning and heading back to the JBRY dorm.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

The next night, Ruby stumbled into the ballroom in her dress and heels, grabbing onto the podium at the entrance before she fell.

Pyrrha rushed forward and helped her back to a standing position, albeit her legs wobbling. "You look beautiful!"

Ruby groaned and looked down at her forced heels. "We need to have a serious talk about how you and Weiss fight in these things!"

Pyrrha grinned sheepishly. "Well, it's just something to practice. Have you seen Jaune yet?"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

The aforementioned blonde was straightening his tie as he walked towards the ballroom. "I hope I got this knot right. After Yang telling us to look the part…"

"Knew you'd look good in a tie."

Jaune looked up to see Blake and Yang in dresses of black and white, both looking at him happily. "I…you both look…wow…"

Yang winked at her leader. "Thanks Jauney, you don't look too bad yourself."

"So what exactly is going on here…" He asked, glancing back and forth between the two.

Blake grinned slyly. "Well, Yang and I talked it over a few hours ago, and we decided that we'd try sharing you, see how that goes, if you're okay with that."

Jaune's eyes widened and his mouth dropped. "S-share?! Me?! Are you sure that you don't want Sun or so-"

Yang's fingers met his lips. "Jaune, we both want to be with _you_. Not Sun, not Neptune, not Ren. Y-O-U."

Blake took one of Jaune's arms in hers, and Yang took the other, the pair leading him towards the ballroom.

"Well, this is gonna be a night to remember…" Jaune stammered earning a laugh from his dates.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Ironwood stepped into his office on his ship, reviewing footage of the battle at the docks as it went to static for about two minutes, coming back just as the Omega fled. "Something's missing here…" He typed in a few codes, rewinding and clearing up the footage. "P.E.N.N.Y., please run playback sequence."

"Beginning playback!" A robotic voice said from the computer.

The footage began again, showing White Fang members slowly unloading a series of crates. "Play at two times speed." The video began to play faster, showing nothing different until a girl in black held Roman Torchwick at swordpoint, and then a white haired boy flew down and joined the fight, firing blasts of green energy at the White Fang. "What the…" He dialed an unknown number on his scroll, his eyes growing dark. "You need to get to Beacon A.S.A.P.. Yes, we have another one here at the school. This could be just what Atlas needs."

The A.I. voice spoke again as Ironwood ended his call. "Sir...are you sure this is the proper course of action? Perhaps if you placed me in a body again I coul-"

"Absolutely not!" Ironwood shouted, slamming his scroll down on the desk. "P.E.N.N.Y., the last time you were in a body, you tore up an entire Atlas military ship because you couldn't control yourself. The last thing I need is you ripping that Ghost to molecules! You will stay in this system where I can keep an eye on you, and that's final. Now arrange for our guests to be brought to Beacon." He looked at the screen again, watching the Ghost fly around, firing off energy blasts and even sending out a wail that seemed to destroy everything in its path. "Also, P.E.N.N.Y., get me everything you can on Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, and Ruby Rose..."

 **A/N: Hey guys! Shorter chapter this time, I know! It was a bit of filler as we trail into the latter half of volume 2 canon. But hey, we got the canon Yang speech done, btw I own nothing of that speech minus the Jaune bits. As for the now BlakexJaunexYang, well, I decided to make it a trio and nothing more than that. No harem! Just Black, White, and Yellow! It makes sense in my head, so…roll with it. Let's see what happens! As for Ironwood…dun dun dunnnnnn…. REVIEWS!**

 **desdelor97: Thank you! I'm really enjoying writing it!**

 **AnimeA55Kicker: Right? Haha**

 **NoxXelor: I mean, that's true and all, BUT Jaune's powers are developing differently than Danny's.**

 **Guest: What?**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: Board game bit was fun, as was the shutting down of Sun. Don't get me wrong, Sun is one of my favorite characters, and he's obviously playing SOME part in this fic, just not as Blake's man friend! As you could tell with the end, Ironwood is CLEARLY involved with SOMETHING ghostly. Originally last chapter I had an A/N at the beginning of the chapter ranting about people telling me to slow down and telling me that Jaune's powers should just be his semblance, but decided to just nix that and write it into the chapter. Glynda and the Schnee family are the only two exceptions, but still, limits! Thanks again for the review my friend! Hope you enjoyed this chapter too! THE THEME SONG THOUGH**


	9. Dance Dance Mechanation

Phantom of Beacon

The doors to the ballroom opened and an eerie silence crept over the crowd as the trio walked in.

"Is that Arc with TWO of his teammates?"

"How did a shrimp like that get two babes?"

"Blondie must be _packing_ if you ask me. I'll have to find out!"

"Coco!"

Jaune blushed at the last remark, his cheeks red with embarrassment as his dates dragged him inside.

"Just ignore them Jaune. Comments like that are exactly why they DON'T have dates." Blake said, glaring at team CRDL.

Yang wrapped herself around Jaune's right arm, pressing up against him causing a further blush. "As for Coco's remark, well we _do_ share a dorm. Can't have helped myself but to peek maybe a bit."

"Y-Yang!" Jaune sputtered, his cheeks rivaling Ruby's hood at this point.

Speak of the hooded girl herself, Ruby came rushing to her teammates, stumbling along in her heels, promptly crashing into her leader with an "OOF".

"Why?" Jaune muttered from the ground.

Ruby hoisted herself back up, nervously brushing her dress. "I'm so sorry! I can't walk in these lady stilts! Yang, why can't I just get back in my hood and boots?"

"Ruby, you can't spend every day fighting, even if you want to." Yang said honestly, adding the last bit before Ruby could interrupt.

Jaune slowly stood from the floor, brushing off his suit. "She's right, Ruby. If we fight every day, then when can we just relax and be people?"

"Wise words, Mr. Arc."

JBRY jumped as Professor Ozpin came seemingly out of nowhere. "Professor?"

He raised his glasses, eyeing the four. "If you think about it, fighting and dancing aren't so different. Two, or in some cases, three partners interlocked, although one wrong move on the ballroom merely leads to a swollen foot."

Ruby kicked the ground slightly. "Yeah, or a swollen ankle…"

"It's not every day that friends are able to come together like this. Time has a way of testing our bonds, but it's nights like these that can help keep them stronger than ever. Nights like these are ones we'll never forget." Ozpin smiled, earning grins in response.

A new set of music began, signaling dancers to take their partners. Jaune extended a hand to both Yang and Blake, each taking his in turn and heading towards the dance floor.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Aboard Ironwoods ship, Cinder snuck through the hallways, heading towards the control room. "How much time do I have?" She spoke through an earpiece.

"About fifteen minutes. Once it hits midnight, the crowd will disperse too much to provide a decent cover." Emerald spoke from back in the ballroom. "Ugh, watch your hands, Mercury, or I'll take them."

Mercury scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You want me."

"Quiet, both of you!" Cinder hissed as she crept past a few guards into the control center. Taking a glance around, she quickly removed a device from her belt, placing it in the data slot.

"Error, this is a restricted area. Please cease your actions or you will be pers-pers-persecuted." P.E.N.N.Y. flickered on the screen, her voice garbled. "What are y-you…no! Sto-"

Cinder smirked evilly as she hit the activation code and the virus fully transferred. "Don't worry, soon you will be free again, and everything will fall right into place."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

Back at the dance, Sun was watching Yang, Jaune, and Blake, letting out a sigh as he leaned over the punch bowl. "Man, I thought it would be a sure thing…"

"I see you're enjoying the punch too?"

Sun looked up to see Ruby sipping on a glass of punch, swaying awkwardly to the music.

"Oh, hey Ruby. Not much of a dance person?" He asked, standing back up, grabbing a glass for himself.

Ruby pointed at herself then waved her free hand out. "I'm trying! I just feel so…awkward! Well that and I still can't walk in these lady stilts…"

"You're telling me! The dancing part I've got down easily, but the dress code?" He went to adjust his tie, somehow only loosening it more. "Ugh, you don't really learn formalities in Vacuo."

Ruby let out a small laugh, setting down her glass and fixing Sun's tie for him. He flushed a bit, not going unnoticed by Ruby. "Well now we both feel awkward!" She cheered.

Sun let out a laugh, Ruby joining in. He raised his glass to her and grinned. "To the socially awkward then!"

"Here here!" She grabbed her cup and clanked it against Sun's before the pair drank down a taste of the crimson liquid.

Sun set his glass back down and extended his hand. "Well, since Yang, Blake, and Jaune are all busy, maybe we should just dance with each other?"

Ruby looked at his hand, then up to his face catching his honest smile, and she flushed a deep scarlet. "W-wha-we-dance-together?" She nervously extended her hand to his and took it in a gentle grasp.

Sun smiled and lead her to the dance floor, twirling her to the beat. "Just go with the flow! Dancing's kind of like fighting ya know, though honestly its more exhausting!"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

A few songs later, Sun and Ruby had gone back to the punch bowl, laughing and talking about adventures and weapons. Jaune, Blake, and Yang were out dancing still, the latter two being pleasantly surprised at their date.

"Jaune, for as goofy as you are, I feel the need to ask: Where did you learn to dance like that?" Blake asked, smiling.

Yang grinned and grabbed his arm, only to be twirled around a few times. "Yeah Jauney, you've got the moves!"

"Eh, nothing too special. But these things tend to happen when you've got seven sisters." He released Yang and put Blake into a dip, heat rising to their faces.

"Oh, seven, that's pret-SEVEN SISTERS?!" Yang shouted, the ballroom going silent at her outburst. "Eheheheh…party on?" There was a bit of laughter before the music kicked back up and the dance resumed. "Seven sisters? That explains a lot…"

"Yeah, wait, like what?!" Jaune prodded, only for Yang and Blake to both grin and snicker a bit. "Oh whatever, I'm awesome."

Yang grabbed his arm and hugged him tight. "You're pretty great, ghost boy."

"She's not wrong." Blake said as Jaune took her hand in his, the three enjoying the company immensely. "And looks like even Ruby is having fun tonight."

The three looked over to see Sun balancing a cup on his nose and Ruby giggling uncontrollably. Yang's eyes flashed red for a moment before she felt Jaune's hand on her shoulder. "Yang, we all know she's young, but look at how she's smiling. Look how happy she looks in a _social_ situation."

Yang watched as Ruby and Sun _monkeyed_ around, laughing at her own pun in her head. "I know Ruby can handle herself, but she's all I have left besides my dad. If anything happened to her…"

"Yang, it's Sun. He's not going to do anything besides make her laugh and feel normal. Isn't that what she wanted? Normal knees?" Jaune asked.

"I guess you're right…though he and I will still be having a talk later." Yang cracked her knuckles menacingly, causing Blake and Jaune to laugh. "You two wanna get out of here? Dance is slowing down, and I'm exhausted."

"I'm more than okay with that, especially since we have our first mission tomorrow. We could use our rest." Blake said, yawning out the last few words.

Jaune nodded as well, earning a grin from Yang. "Great! I'll go let Ruby know, and we can head back to the dorm!" With that, she meandered over to Sun and Ruby, the former taking a step back when he saw the brawler approaching. "Easy there monkey boy, I won't hurt you, yet. Ruby, the rest of us are headed to bed. Big day tomorrow!"

Sun nodded, waving down Neptune from afar. "Yeah, we should probably be heading out too. Our other teammates aren't here yet, so it'll just be me and Neptune. But we're gonna be fine! And hey Ruby, tonight was fun! Maybe we can hang out again after everyone gets back from their missions?"

Ruby blushed at his proposal before deadpanning. "MISSIONS?! That's tomorrow! We need to rest!" She began to rush for the exit, leaving a slightly dejected Sun with the others. Before he could go anywhere, Ruby crashed back into him with a hug, wrapping her arms around him. "And yes, that sounds great!" She blushed again, releasing the blonde and heading towards the exit with the rest of JBRY.

"So proud of you, Ruby!" Jaune cheered at the reaper, causing her to stay red as can be.

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

JBRY walked through the empty courtyard, most students either still at the dance or having gone to bed. "All in all, I'd say this was a pretty good night!" Jaune said, looking back at his teammates.

Blake simply nodded, a sly grin on her face. Yang wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and Ruby just smiled. "Loverboy, tonight was perfect! We're definitely doing this again sometime!"

Jaune grinned at the thought. "Great! How about when we get ba-"

"Look out!" Blake shouted, grabbing Jaune and shoving him away as a mechanized Titan dropped from the sky. "What in Remnant is that?!"

The Titan stood to its full height, gears whirring and metal clanking as it moved. The body seemed to be made up of pieces from different Atlesian robots, including knights and paladins, everything spliced together with crude welding. "T-t-targets acquired. Blake Bel-Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, R-Ruby Rose. Des-destroy targets to finalize objec-objec-objective."

Yang took a boxing stance before looking at her wrists. "We don't have our weapons!"

Jaune took a look around before summoning his powers. "Going ghost!" He shouted, the white rings switching him into his ghost form, hair shining white in the moonlight. "You three call for your lockers! I'll hold this thing off!" He ordered, the girls nodding and finding a safe place to use their scrolls.

The Titan turned towards Jaune, sensors glowing red as it scanned him. "Primary t-t-target engaged. Capture by any-any means necessary." The Titan spoke again before charging at Jaune, swinging its massive fist towards the boy.

Jaune ducked under it, narrowly dodging the attack as the fist swung over his head. Jumping backward, he fired ecto-blasts from his hands towards the Titan, hindering it slightly. "Yeah!"

The Titan re-stabilized, slots on its shoulders opening to reveal cables that shot out and wrapped themselves around Jaune's wrists, thrashing him around in the air. "Neutralize Subject Phantom at all-at all costs." It spoke again, the mechanized voice echoing through the courtyard.

"Jaune, hold on!" Yang shouted, grabbing Ember Celica from her locker and launching herself into the air. She came crashing down on the Titan's head, sending it to the ground.

Jaune hit the ground hard, but shook it off and grabbed the cables, charging them with energy. "Go ghost stinger!" The energy traveled up the cables into the Titan's shoulders, as small explosions began to go off.

"Dama-damage dete-dete-detected. Yang Xiao Long, threat level red. Avoid physical damage to hind-hinder semblance." The Titan spoke again, surprising Jaune and Yang.

"What the heck IS this thing?!" Yang shouted, cocking her gauntlets. Blake and Ruby came rushing towards them, weapons drawn.

Blake looked at it up and down, looking for weak points. "It's an amalgamation of Atlas technology, but poorly spliced. Notice the thick, crude welds around the joints. If we can hit it there, we should be able to destroy it." She pointed at the welds, the joints creaking as the Titan moved.

Yang nodded, but kept a frown on her face. "How does it know us though?"

Ruby thought for a moment before cocking Crescent Rose. "Someone hacked school records maybe? I mean we're all on a team together."

"But that would mean it would know me as well. What if…there was a tape from the docks. Someone saw us fighting the Omega!" Jaune shouted.

"ALERT. OMEGA PRESENCE DETECTED. MAXIMUM THREAT LEVEL EXC-" The Titan was cut off as an Omega Beringel phased up from the ground, slamming its fists on the ground and sending JBRY flying backwards. "PROTOCOL FOR OMEGA BER-" The Beringel turned intangible and flew into the Titan, disappearing inside the mechanical monster.

The Titan froze for a moment before a ghostly white glow took it over, pieces of the suit turning white and bone like armor sprouted from various places, one going over an eye of the Titan. Suddenly the Titan roared back to life, looking at JBRY with hunger.

"The Omega possessed it! Can it do that? Is that fair?!" Jaune shouted as the Beringel-Titan leaped towards him, swinging its fists towards him at blinding speeds. Jaune flew upwards, dodging the blow and sending the beast stumbling. "Guys, we need to take this thing out, now!"

Yang and Blake nodded, each taking offensive stances. The pair ran at the beast, Blake running behind to then leap off Yang's shoulders over the beast, swinging her blades at the head. She was grabbed mid air and thrown at Jaune like a barrel, until Jaune grabbed her arm as she flew towards him and swung her back using the momentum. She struck against the right arm, severing it from the Beringel-Titan.

The beast roared in pain, clutching the stump where the spliced arm once was. Red eyes flared as the beast beat its chest with the remaining arm. "RAAAAAA!" It roared at the group, the bone armor now on the forearm opening to reveal missiles. The Beringel-Titan fired the missiles at Yang and Ruby, the latter speeding away with her semblance. Yang closed her eyes for a moment before opening them a blood red. Her hair flared up as her semblance activated, igniting some of the plants around her. She slammed her fists together, creating a small shockwave to send a few of the missiles off course before firing round after round at each missile, destroying them.

"Ruby, Crimson Delta! Yang, Blake, Gold Rush!" Jaune shouted as he flew at the beast, firing ecto-blasts left and right, attempting to stun it long enough.

Ruby nodded and took off using her semblance, moving around the beast in a triangle at high speeds as Yang and Blake ran together. Blake jumped on Yang's back as she fired Ember Celica behind her, launching the two of them towards the Beringel-Titan. Yang's fist struck the bone plate covering the left leg, cracking them like porcelain as Blake swung her blade, cutting the plate in two. Ruby aimed Crescent Rose and fired, striking the welds on the left leg, splintering them like rotten wood.

The Beringel-Titan fell to its remaining knee, howling in pain. It beat its remaining fist on the ground next to it, glaring at the hunters in training like a wounded dog.

Jaune flew down and glared at the beast. "Whatever you want, I don't have it! So just-" The beast swung and clawed Jaune, cutting a few pieces of his hair and sending him stumbling backwards.

"Jaune!" The girls shouted, rushing towards him.

He held up a hand and flashed his eyes at the Grimm possessed Titan. "You've got claws, I've got this. Cover your ears, girls!" Jaune shouted before inhaling deeply and letting out a ghostly wail towards the beast. It howled in pain as it was torn apart, giving Jaune one last look before the Grimm possession faded, leaving behind the remains of the Titan. Jaune's ghost form faded as he fell to his knees, exhausted and dripping with sweat.

Blake ran to him and hoisted him up, supporting him with an arm over her shoulders. "How many times are you going to use that thing before it stops knocking you senseless?"

Jaune's lips curled slightly into a grin. "Just…need more…practice…" He panted, earning a roll of the eyes from his partner.

Ruby walked towards the Titan looking at the chest. "Guys, I think there's someone in here!" She called to the others as she noticed a hand behind the glass plate.

Yang ran over and grabbed the frame, pulling against it until it came free, revealing a girl around their age with ginger hair and a pale complexion. "Hello? Are you okay?"

The girl slowly blinked awake, looking worse for wear. "H-hello? Where am I?" She asked, grabbing her head in pain.

"You're at Beacon Academy, in the courtyard. You're also inside a spliced piece of Atlas technology that just attacked us." Blake said, still carrying Jaune over her shoulders.

"Beacon…Academy? My mem- I mean I don't remember how I got here. My last recollection is at Atlas Academy. Mr. Ironwood was not pleased with me, and then he…strange. I can't recall after that." The girl said, sitting up inside the destroyed Titan.

Blake and Jaune exchanged a glance. "Ironwood? As in General James Ironwood of the Atlas Military?"

"One in the same!" The girl said, looking back and forth between the two. "Is there something the two of you know about Mr. Ironwood?"

Jaune's face scowled before looking back at the girl with unease. "Let's just say he's…"

"What Jaune means to say is that the General is just a mysterious guy! Right Jaune?" Yang said, looking at Jaune and moving her eyes towards the girl to signal her leader.

"...Right. That. Do you have a name?" Jaune asked.

"Of course! My name is Penny."

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"Everything go smoothly, ma'am?" Emerald asked as Cinder re-entered the ballroom.

Cinder smirked, smoothing her dress. "The virus worked excellently. It even attracted an Omega to possess the A.I." She glanced at her gloves as though inspecting for any fault before continuing. "Of course, the Phantom and his girls took the beast down with no trouble, but this was a poorly spliced piece of scrap metal. Imagine the possibilities of an Omega taking a fully functional Titan. With a few modifications, everything will be going according to plan…"

 _ **RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY**_

"P.E.N.N.Y., please display the information gathered on Belladonna, Xiao Long, and Rose." Ironwood said, walking back into his office on the ship. "P.E.N.N.Y., please display the requested information."

The screens hummed with static as though the system was empty. A faint crackle could be heard like an echo. "Er-"

Ironwood grabbed the screen in front of him forcefully, causing more static. "P.E.N.N.Y., please respond. Penny!" He shouted at the screen, finally causing the static to disappear and a lone word to take its place.

"Error."

 **A/N: Ta dah! I'm back! Again, sorry for the wait on a new chapter, but work has been…hellish? Yeah, hellish. I had to take time on breaks to write pieces of this on my phone thanks to busy hours, but it's all coming together!**

 **So we've now got Omegas possessing things. Spooky, right? Tis the season I guess! Obviously Jaune still has little to no endurance when it comes to his Ghostly Wail, but he's getting there! Powers are growing stronger, team is growing together. I've got a feeling you guys are gonna like what's yet to come! ON TO REVIEWS! Also, how bout that Ruby x Sun action going on there?**

 **CrowBlood666: Wait and see!**

 **Dwalkern64: The pairing was decided a while ago, but I didn't want to start it up until this chapter. I'm keeping Ruby out of it though. No harems allowed! Haha! But glad you're liking the story!**

 **.1: Stuff! Ironwood is an enigma here, and I'm keeping JBRY (and you readers) in the mystery!**

 **Twilight Rift: Shenanigans!**

 **Swimfeared: The only people who know what Ironwood is up to are me, Ironwood, and the mysterious stranger he called to Beacon. Stay tuned!**

 **Jack Lycan: Not a mini harem! Just…well I hate to call it a threesome, so I'm calling it a trio. And boyfriend? Whoah there, Jaune hasn't even taken them out to dinner! Ha. As for Ironwood, well, there's so much more mystery to him than you all know.**

 **newwriter2016: It's going somewhere! Give it time! And surprise! It's Penny! The Vytal Festival is on its way in the next few chapters, still need to get through V2 before I really get that going, but as for the Pyrrha situation, I honestly believe that Pyrrha would thrive as a leader with Weiss assisting. Pyrrha has the tactical knowledge and the skills to win nearly any battle, and Weiss has the social ability and command to help dictate things. Together, the pair would be a lethal force on any battlefield! Plus, they can just have Nora hit enemies with a hammer!**

 **desdelor97: Thank you!**

 **gamelover41592: Updated!**

 **Team NovaStorm: Read the last A/N. Not a harem! Just a trio! Also, his semblance is a secret! It will come about soon enough, but no spoilers.**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: "Whole team". I can't get that Taiyang meme out of my head now, but you're not wrong at all. Minus Ruby, Jaune has the ladies of his team infatuated with him, and it's going well for him! Ship name confirmed, I love it. Black KnightFire it is! Surprising, a bit, but Yang's been flirty with Jaune from the get go, and seeing how he leads and fights for others obviously sparked something in Yang. Glad you enjoyed the Yang's past bits with Jaune chirping in every now and again! I wanted him there for multiple reasons, but I'll get into that later. As for Ruby, while Milk and Cereal was briefly considered, I decided to throw Sun a bone, or well, banana. I'll have fun with these two! You're predicting things pretty well, so let's see what you make of things yet to come! Thanks as always!**

 **Now before I go, Nexus Bladeguard left a wonderful review containing a song, so here's the first Omake of the story, edits made by me**

 **He's a Phantom. "Music" Jauney Phantom, Jauney Phantom. Yo Jauney Arc he was just 17 when Atlas built a very strange machine. It was designed to view a world unseen.**

 **(He's gonna kill the Grimm cuz he's Jauney Phantom)**

 **When it didnt quite work, the docs, they just quit**

 **Then Jauney took a look inside of it.**

 **There was a great big flash, everything just changed, his mol-e-cules got all re-arranged.**

 **(Phantom, Phantom)**

 **When he first woke up he, realized, he had snow-white hair and glowing green eyes.**

 **He could walk through walks, disappear, and fly!**

 **He was much more unique than the other guys! "Scene of Jaune being shoved into his rocket locker, then him phasing out and shoving Cardin in instead"**

 **It was then that he knew what he had to do,**

 **He had to stop all the Grimm that were killing you.**

 **He's here to fight for me and you!**

 **(He's gonna killem all cuz he's Jauney Phantom, Gonna killem all cuz he's Jauney Phantom. Gonna killem cuz he's!... Jauney Phantom.)**

 **Well guys, there you have it! Chapter 9! And I made it a bit longer to make up for the absence! Enjoy, and till next time…REVIEW! :D**


	10. A Breaching Fieldtrip

Phantom of Beacon

The next morning, General Ironwood stood in Ozpin's office with Goodwitch and Ozpin. After a moment, he slammed his fist down on Ozpin's desk in a rage. "They were here…dammit Ozpin they were _here_!"

"Yes, James. We're _very_ much aware of that, thank you!" Goodwitch adjusted her glasses, her scowl towards Ironwood chilling Ozpin to the bone.

"Oh? Fantastic! You're _aware._ Now are we going to _do_ something about this, or are we simply going to ignore what's right in front of us!" Ironwood shouted just as the elevator sounded.

Jaune stepped out of the elevator sheepishly, brushing off his shoulders as he stepped forward. "Sorry that took so long. Someone ran in and hit all the buttons right before the doors closed."

"Thank you for coming, Jaune. Are you and your team feeling alright?" Ozpin asked, motioning Jaune to come closer to them.

Jaune nodded. "We're alright, I suppose. A few bruises, but nothing a bit of Aura can't fix. Though I wish we could find smaller things to fight." He grinned nervously, rubbing the back of his head.

The three teachers stared at him silently.

"Ehehehe…that's the tone we're going for. Got it…"

Ironwood stepped forward and clapped Jaune on the shoulder. "Jaune, I deem it appropriate to let you know that you and your team displayed the exact behavior of true Huntsmen and Huntresses. You analyzed an immediate threat and worked together to keep the innocent safe."

"Thank you, sir."

"Now, the General has informed us of the missing Atlas tech from his ship, but can you please explain to me what you and your team fought?" Ozpin asked, pressing his glasses further up his nose.

"Did it communicate at all? Did it mention any names?" Goodwitch chimed in.

Jaune's hand rose to his temple, scratching it slightly. "Honestly…I mean we called it a Titan. It was spliced together using different pieces of Atlesian tech. Pieces of the new paladins and knights all…melded together into that thing, but it sounded faulty. Its words kept jumping, like it was having trouble functioning properly. At first, it was targeting Blake, Yang, and Ruby, almost like it knew them by some sort of database, but then…" Jaune paused and thought for a moment. _"Maybe I should leave out the part about where it targeted me."_ He looked back up, rubbing his knuckles. "Then a Grimm appeared from the ground below us. It was like a Beringel, but…it was different. More powerful. It flew straight into the Titan and took it over. It grew Grimm like armor and packed way more of a punch. We managed to get it down and delivered a final blow. The Grimm vanished and the Titan fell apart, whatever virus was controlling it vanished."

"A virus? Could you explain more on that?" Ozpin asked

Jaune nodded. "Do you have a piece of paper, sir?" Ozpin nodded and handed him a pencil and pad from his desk. Jaune scribbled on it a bit before turning it to the teachers. "It kind of looked like this. A black queen chess piece, hidden in the red of the eyes."

Ozpin, Ironwood, and Goodwitch looked at each other with concerned faces. "Thank you, Jaune. Why don't you go and spend some time with your team? You've had a troubling night, and you all have a big day ahead of you."

Jaune nodded. "Yes sir, thank you." He headed towards the elevator and got in, the doors closing behind him.

Ironwood watched as the door closed. "Oz, I think we should question Mr. Arc for more informati-"

"Leave the boy alone, James. Mr. Arc has enough to deal with. Now, as for his teammates being targeted; any thoughts on why that may be?" Ozpin questioned, staring at the general.

Ironwood stiffened at the question, clenching his fists. "Are you implying something, Ozpin?"

"I think the real question is: have you been spying on our students, James?" Goodwitch retorted.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

"So…what happened?" Yang asked from her bunk, peering over to Jaune as he entered the room.

Jaune stretched, walking over to his bunk and packing a few things into his bag. "Well, I told them what happened with the Titan and everything."

Ruby's eyes widened, her hand going to her mouth in shock. " _Everything?_ "

"Okay not everything everything. I left out the parts about being a ghost, the word Omega, and of course…well…" He gestured to the ginger haired girl sitting on Ruby's bed.

"I thank you for not mentioning me to the General. He would be…unhappy if he found me out and about…" Penny said, nervously rubbing her wrists.

Blake's ears perked up at this, turning her head towards the girl. "Are you telling me that General Ironwood was keeping you prisoner?!"

Yang, Ruby, and Jaune turned towards Penny, eyes wide in shock. "He…he told me it was to keep me safe, so he had footage sent to my father to make it seem like I was able to go about as was intended."

"Penny, we have to go to Ozpin about this! He can protect you!" Yang shouted, slamming her fist down.

Penny looked up, eyes wide and brimming with tears. "I couldn't! The General would find out, and he would trap me back in that…prison…"

Jaune placed his hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "I understand the fear, Penny. If he found out about me, I'd be in just as bad a spot, but I have an idea! Yang, can you borrow some blonde hair dye from Coco?"

Yang blinked at her leader, tilting her head to the right. "Uhm Jaune, as a fellow natural blonde here, wouldn't she be a bit suspicious?"

"Just…say it's for a prank or something? Look, this could work!"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

The members of JBRY stared at Penny, admiring their work. "Jaune, I hate to say it, but this just might be the best idea you've ever had!" Yang cheered.

Penny sat in front of them, her once ginger curled hair now laying straight and blonde. She sat rigid as Yang brushed her hair more, color rising to her cheeks. "Are you sure that this will work, Jaune?"

Jaune grinned, eyes gleaming with pride. "Of course!" He pulled a pair of blue contacts from his bag, handing them to her. "Just pop these in, and the look will be complete! I have seven sisters running around out there, so who here will know that she isn't one of them? She looks just like Jamie with all this!" He flipped his wallet open, revealing a picture of the Arc family.

"Wow, she does look like your sister! And Jamie? Really? That's...similar." Ruby said, silver eyes gleaming. "So do we just tell Ozpin that she showed up for a surprise visit?"

Jaune nodded. "Exactly! Then she can just join us on our mission as a shadow! Surely Ozpin won't mind. You can fight, right Penny?"

She nodded, slamming her fist into her hand. "I'm combat ready!"

 _"Weirdest sense of deja-vu there…"_ Jaune thought as Yang threw a set of clothes at Penny.

"Alright _Jamie_ , get changed so we can go find Ozpin!"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Ozpin stared at JBRY+1 with a curious look on his face. "So you want me to allow Mr. Arc's sister on a school sanctioned mission where you, along with she will face dangers beyond the norm?"

Jaune nodded, a determined grin on his face. "Yes sir, Professor."

Ozpin sipped from his mug, sparing the five teenagers each a glance. "Well, okay. She's a Huntress in training, and in this case I will allow her to shadow you and your team, though a licensed Huntsman will be accompanying you. Now, as for your mission, I'm sending you all on a special assignment. General Ironwood's scouts spotted rogue movements coming from the ruins of Mountain Glenn. Your job is to track and document these movements, eliminating Grimm along the way." He paused to slurp from his mug. "Now originally I was going to have Doctor Oobleck accompany a team to this sector to eliminate the Grimm, but he will be moved elsewhere to accompany team PRWN."

Yang and Ruby grinned at the thought. "Yes! No more Oobleck than need-" Yang stopped when she saw Ozpin raise his eyebrow. "I-I mean, oh darn, no Dr. Oobleck!"

Ozpin chuckled, taking a final slurp from his mug and setting it down on his desk. "I want you five to be careful beyond the city walls. Grimm grow more…violent in the wilds. Your Huntsman mentor will guide you and be there in case of trouble. Understood?"

JBRY +1 shouted simultaneously, "Yes sir!"

Ozpin grinned and swiped through pictures of Huntsman on the screen. "Splendid! Now, your Huntsman is…"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

"You have _GOT_ to be kidding me!" Yang shouted as she saw their mentor.

The man standing in front of JBRY +1 took a long drink from his flask as he looked at the teens, sizing them up. "Well Firecracker, you've definitely gotten stronger, but you're careless with your attacks. Ruby, you've still got some growing to do, pipsqueak."

Jaune and Blake stared blankly at the man in front of them, looking back and forth between the girls and him. "Uh, Ruby? Yang? Something you aren't telling us?" Jaune asked, scratching his head.

"Oh! This is our Un-"

"UNCLE QROWWW!" Ruby dashed forwards and latched onto his arm. "Hi!"

Qrow looked at the girl before ruffling her hair and looking at the others. "Name's Qrow. Ruby and Yang's must be Jaune Arc, team leader." Qrow said, stashing his flask in his pocket and sizing Jaune up. "Bit scrawny, but your dad was the same way."

Jaune blinked in surprise, "You knew my dad?"

Qrow grinned and put his arms behind his head. "Oh me and Jon go way back! He was at Beacon the same time as me, and there's some stories there, the best ones being highly inappropriate."

Yang grinned and Ruby made barfing noises as Blake and Jaune laughed. Penny shifted uneasily from her spot near Blake, Jaune taking notice.

"See Jamie, I told you dad was trouble when he was younger!" Jaune said to Penny, Qrow finally acknowledging the girl. "Qrow, this is my sister, Jamie Arc. She showed up by surprise, so Ozpin sai-"

"Oz said she could tag along. Fine by me, but we need to get going. Grab your packs and get in the Bullhead. I'll explain more once we're there." Qrow said, hefting his own pack over his shoulder and walking towards the docks.

The girls grabbed their packs and started to follow, only to stop and see Jaune frozen in place. "Jaune?" Blake asked.

"Did he say Bullheads?"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Jaune grabbed the porcelain bowl for dear life as he retched up his breakfast. Having not wanted to disturb the others, Jaune shut the door behind him, only for it to open and Blake to step inside.

"You doing alright, Jaune?" She asked, leaning against the wall.

He nodded weakly, the sickly sensation having not yet left his body. "Just a bit…woozy."

She nodded and placed her hands on his back, moving them in slow circles. "I know you get a bit airsick, Jaune, so I had a thought. If you stayed in here with the door closed, you could use your powers to float just above the Bullhead's floor."

Jaune tilted his head in confusion as he sighed in relief at Blake's movements. "But what would that d-oh! I think I understand now." He shifted his form, eyes turning their brilliant green and hair ghost white. Jaune took a moment to stand before floating just above the floor, and to his surprise, the sickly feeling vanished. "Blake, you may just be the smartest person I've ever met."

She blushed at his words, grinning softly. Her hand was suddenly wrapped in his, and her blush grew further. "It's…no big deal, Jaune. I'm sure you'd have figured something out if it were me."

"But you're _always_ there, Blake. You're always helping me."

Blake squeezed his hand gently, turning her head so that amber eyes met green. "You would do the same for any of us. I'm simply…returning the favor forwards."

As Jaune was about to lean in, he jolted back at a loud banging on the door. "If you're done in there, we're about to land! Clean yourself up and let's go, kid!" Qrow shouted.

"Guess that's our que to leave. Hey Blake?"

"Yes?"

"Do you have any gum?"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

JBRY+1 took in the sight of the ruins around them. Once tall buildings now stood in ruin, crumbling with lack of care and attention. Some had collapsed completely, their stone framing almost giving up against the weight of the world around them.

"This is…this is awful. What happened here?" Jaune asked, peering into one of the burnt houses.

Qrow closed his eyes and let out a sigh. "New settlements always have trouble going up. See, when you're building a whole town, there tends to be a bit of…negativity from others. That negativity attracts the Grimm. Huntsmen and Huntresses repel the Grimm, and the work continues. But there's another problem here beyond the walls: Bandits. People who move from place to place, taking whatever they want, and they're usually skilled fighters. One night after a Grimm attack, a group of Bandits snuck their way in, and so it began. The panic, the fear…the Huntsmen were already exhausted, and between trying to evacuate the city and hold the line against the Bandits…it was too much. Another pack of Grimm showed up, this time much larger than the first, and…it was a slaughter." Qrow took a long drink from his flask, the gravity of his words setting in. "You five haven't been outside the kingdoms yet, so I warn you: Be careful. Stick with me, stay sharp, and I'll make sure that no one dies."

JBRY+1 nodded nervously, Ruby shifting uncomfortably at the last word. Yang placed her hand on Ruby's shoulder, giving it a knowing squeeze.

"Alright, enough of the history lesson. There's six of us here, so we'll be splitting into two. Jaune, Blake, and Jamie in one team, and myself, Yang, and Ruby in the other. Oz said there was movement down here, and we need to know why. Stay in communication at all times, and we'll rendezvous here in a few hours. Got it?" Qrow ordered, earning a nod from the teens. "Good, let's go then."

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Jaune peered over the edge of the ruined skyscraper he stood atop, hood pulled over his head as the night crept in. Just as he was about to lean back, he saw two men walking into the ruins of an old factory just below him. "Blake, two targets spotted below. Pursuing now."

"Got it. Jamie and I will be there in three." Blake said over the comms.

"Nice job, kid. Stay in the shadows and keep your eyes on them. I want to know what's going on here." Qrow said over the comms, with a bit more static due to the distance. "We'll get to your position as fast as possible, but stay safe, kid."

Jaune switched into his ghost form, leaping down from the rooftop. He slowly floated down, making no noise as his feet touched the ground. Quickly rushing after the two men, he saw them go through a large metal door with a staircase leading underground. He willed himself to turn invisible and crept towards the door, phasing through it and heading underground, not noticing the blinking green light behind him.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Far below the ruins, the White Fang was hard at work hauling crates and barrels onto a train. Roman Torchwick stepped out from one of the cars, his brows creased in anger. "Let's move it you animals! You aren't being paid to stand around doing nothing! Can't teach a beast to do a humans job..."

"What was that, Roman?"

Roman jumped, turning around and his angry look being replaced with one of fear. "Adam! So...nice to see you! And I was just complimenting your subordinates on their work!"

Adam cocked his head to the side, his brows creasing as he drew his blade. "Listen well, Roman. I have no desire to spend more time in your presence than necessary. I only came to supervise this phase, as I have...other arrangements to attend to. Cinder told me to mention that we won't need your..Neo to join us at Beacon. Keep her ready in case though."

Roman scoffed for a moment before remembering the blade at his chest. "Right! No Neo, stay out of trouble! Come on, kid, lighten up!"

"If this is all you needed me for, I shall take my leave. Don't do anything stupid, Roman." Adam walked to a cart heading opposite to the train and took off, leaving his mask in his wake.

Jaune crept down and grabbed the mask off the ground, examining it closely. "Wonder why he left this behind?" He said aloud.

"Who said that?!"

"Ah...shit."

An alarm sounded, blaring throughout the caves. Jaune flew for the ceiling but crashed into a glowing green barrier, shocking him and sending him to the ground.

"Well well, Ghost Boy! Fancy seeing you down here!" Roman said walking over to Jaune, giving him a kick in the ribs for good measure. "Why is it that you keep showing up at all of my operations?" He kicked Jaune again, a yelp of pain emanating outwards. "Lock him up on the train! Use the cuffs that she had made, and Neo, keep an eye on him."

A White Fang member ran over and slapped a set of cuffs on Jaune. He then slung the boy over his shoulder and walked towards the train, throwing him in a compartment. "Nighty night, freak."

Neo skipped over and jumped into the compartment, smirking as the door closed.

"JAUNE!"

Roman looked to see Yang beating down the White Fang left and right, the others not far behind her. "Change of plans! We move out, now!" He ran to the engine room and kicked it to life, the gears whirring and cogs creaking to life.

"Hey! Stop that train!" Ruby shouted, running after it. Yang, Blake, Penny, and Qrow followed her, just barely managing to grab onto the back compartment before it disappeared into the tunnel.

Qrow reached behind his back and drew his sword, the blade expanding to its full length as the mechanics came to life. "Alright kids! We have two objectives here! Find Jaune, and stop this train! Blake, see what's in the compartment below us!"

Blake ran to the hatch, opening it to reveal a series of bombs inside. "We've got a bomb!"

"Detach the compartment! Everyone else jump ahead to the next!" Qrow ordered, the team following suit.

Blake drew Gambol Shroud to cut the line, but the locks opened on their own, the compartment drifting a ways before it exploded. "It detached itself!"

Qrow gritted his teeth. "Yang, if there's a bomb in this one, we've got a pro-"

"Bomb here too!" She shouted. "What do we do?"

Ruby groaned aloud. "Jaune could have just phased them through the tunnel or something!"

Qrow's mouth dropped slightly. "Did you say phased?"

"Yes?" She answered honestly. "Why? It's just part of his semblance."

"Well...whatever the case he isn't here, and we need to stop these bombs from destroying any more of the tunnel! Quick, jump to the next car!" The five hopped onto the next car and Qrow fired a round into the wheels, sending the compartment tumbling off the rails. "If we can't stop them, we can at least send them off course! Ruby, I want you up here with me! The rest of you, go find Jaune!"

Yang, Blake, and Penny nodded, hopping into the next car up ahead. "Think he's being guarded?" Blake asked.

Yang nodded, eyes flashing a brilliant red. "I saw that girl from the night of the Paladin fight. The short one that looked like ice cream. She has him." Yang's voice was full of anger at the thought.

"Girl from when?" Penny asked looking back and forth between the two.

Blake sighed aloud, sliding a special dust cartridge into Gambol Shroud. "We went investigating, found a White Fang meeting, and found out that someone in the Atlas military is providing them with prototype Atlesian tech before the street date. Torchwick chased us in a Paladin, we took it down. Torchwick only got away because of a weird girl that seemingly teleported in and out of the area."

"Now _she_ has Jaune, and she could be doing Oum knows what to him…"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

"Ugh…where?" A wisp of cold air blew from his mouth as he regained full consciousness and saw his captor. "You!" Jaune hopped to his feet and ran towards Neo, only to get pulled back by the chains holding his cuffs to the wall. "What? Seriously? I'll just phase out of-okay nevermind that!" He said as he tried and failed, his powers having no effect on the cuffs. "What do you want from me?"

Neo walked towards him and blinked her eyes, pink and brown switching back and forth until she blinked again and a ghostly green took over.

"Wait, you're like me?" He asked, tugging at his chains.

Neo raised an eyebrow and pointed at him. She made a 'so-so' motion at him, then pointed at herself, raising her finger into a one.

Jaune looked at her, puzzled. "So I'm a half ghost, and you're a…you're a full ghost!" He yelled, thrashing his chains behind him.

Neo rushed forwards and kicked him square in the chin, knocking him to his feet. She wagged her finger at him, as if to say 'no no no', and turned from him.

"Get back here! We aren't done!" Jaune shouted on deaf ears as she left his compartment. "Great!"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Yang opened the door to the first open compartment, taking a look inside before signaling the others to follow her. From the opposite side, a wolfish looking man stepped out, bearing a low top hat and clawed gloves.

"Fresh meat…excellent." He spoke in a thick accent, licking his lips hungrily. He flashed his claws at the girls, eyes glinting with delight. "'Fraid this is your last stop, girlies. Boss man said no interference."

Penny stepped forwards, drawing her swords from her backpack, the blades combining into two double bladed swords. "Leave him to me! Find Jaune!" Before Yang and Blake could protest, she rocketed forwards, swinging her blades like a mad woman.

The wolf man dodged, giving Blake and Yang enough time to slip past him into the next compartment.

"Oh you're gonna pay for that, little girl!" He got down on all fours and began to glow a sickly white. His teeth grew a bit, and his hair poked out more from his hat as his mutton chops grew slightly as well. "You've just unleashed the wolf, and now you get to die!" He ran at her with blinding speeds, slashing his claws like a feral beast.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Blake and Yang slipped into the next compartment, this time spotting Neo in their way. The pinkette smirked and curtsied at the pair before raising her eyebrow tauntingly.

"She's mine!" Yang shouted, blasting herself off the floor towards Neo, missing completely as she dodged with ease. "Blake, find Jaun-" She was silenced as Neo kicked her across the cheek.

Neo drew a blade from her parasol, flashing it at the blonde before delivering a series of strikes that rivaled Weiss' speed with her glyphs. As another strike was about to connect, a black blade appeared and blocked it, Blake glowering behind it.

"No way! We take her together!" Blake pulled the trigger on Gambol Shroud and a green energy took the blade over. She swung and connected with Neo, the pinkette's arm showing a slight gash.

Neo glared with rage as she looked between Blake and her now injured arm, green blood dripping to the floor. Her eyes flashed from pink to green before she flew towards the pair, swinging and stabbing with everything she could muster.

Blake and Yang dodged as well as they could, but Neo's attacks were relentless. As Blake went to counter a strike, Neo teleported above the two and bashed their heads together, knocking them unconscious. She made to finish the pair when a portal opened near her, a woman jumping out and slashing at her. Neo jumped back and her face paled, her eyes switching back to pink and brown.

The woman appeared fully, wearing black and red clothing and a full faced Grimm mask. Her jet black hair flowed down her back as she sheathed her sword, the sheath switching the blade to a blood red one.

Neo jumped backwards and teleported away, the shattering sound waking Blake and Yang. The two groggily watched as the woman opened another portal and vanished through it without a trace. "Who was…Jaune!"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Penny was struggling against the wolf man, having to rely on dodging due to the speed of his semblance.

"I can keep this up all night, girly! But the question is, how long can you?!" He pounced at her, only to have his claws blocked. "Ah, got a bit of backbone in there! Good! I like them feisty! Maybe that's why they let Neo have your friend there. By the time she's done with him, he'll be _begging_ to die." He let out a howlish laugh.

The compartment echoed with his laughter before the doors slammed shut on either side. Penny stepped forwards, her eyes glowing green as she willed her swords out in front of her, seemingly by telekinesis. "You will not hurt anyone, ever again!" She threw her arms out, sending her blades flying towards the man at a speed rivaling his own. One struck him on the shoulder, cutting through his aura and leaving a deep gash.

"Gah! You'll pay for that, you little bitch!" He yelled, only to receive a hilt to the face.

"That is not my name!" She sent out a wave of energy, causing his gloves to go haywire, firing off dust rounds everywhere.

The wolf man panicked, releasing his gloves from his wrists and throwing them to the floor. "What the heck are you?!"

Penny glared at him, green eyes chilling him to the bone. "I am Penny! Master of technology!" She sent her blades towards him again, aiming directly for his chest.

Just before they hit, he stepped on a plate in the floor, causing the panel he was on to fall out below, leaving him behind. "Catch ya next time, Penny!" He shouted before running off through an exit tunnel as the Grimm came pouring through the holes behind the train.

Penny glared for a moment before running from her compartment.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Jaune pulled at his chains more and more, straining himself as he fell to his knees again. "Dammit!"

The door slid open, Yang and Blake rushing in. "Jaune!" They shouted as they ran to him. Blake drew Gambol Shroud and slashed at the chains, freeing Jaune from the wall.

"Why didn't you just phase out of here? We could have really used you back there!" Yang said, hugging him tightly.

Jaune let out a noise of 'OOF' as he was embraced. "Yang…too…tight!"

She winked at him. "You think THAT was tight, wait til-"

"YANG! Not the time! We have a mission to finish!" Blake shouted as Yang rubbed her head as if to say 'oops'. "I'm assuming these cuffs did something to you?"

Jaune nodded, now holding his arms in front of him, looking at the cuffs on his wrists. "They suppress my powers. I can't do much of anything with these on."

Yang grabbed his wrists and shattered the locks on the cuffs, sending them to the floor. "There you go! All better now!" She grinned at him, earning an honest smile.

"Thank you, both of you, now don't we have a train to stop?"

As if on cue, the hatch above them opened, revealing Ruby and Qrow. "If you three are done down there, we have a problem! Torchwick broke the controls and jumped ship, and this is a one way tunnel!"

Jaune jumped up and pulled himself to the roof, seeing the end of the tunnel coming fast. Everyone hold onto something!" Jaune slammed his palms down on the roof, turning his body and the one compartment intangible. The energy flowed through to the others, everyone glowing a bright blue as the end of the tunnel came.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Jaune groaned as he stirred, slowly standing up in the town square. He offered a hand to Blake, who stood up slower than he did. Glancing around, he saw that Yang and Ruby were okay, but no sign of Qrow. The ground behind them was covered in boulders like a mountain after a rockslide, but no Grimm. "We did it!"

The rubble burst open as Grimm came pouring through. Civilians screamed and ran, only drawing more Grimm from the hole in the ground. An Omega King Taijitu slithered from the hole and coiled itself around JBRY's stand, the beast much larger than a normal King Taijitu.

"Guys! Hold the line!" Jaune ordered as his team drew their weapons. The Omega swung its head down at Jaune, fangs bearing down towards his head.

"Jaune!" The girls cried as the snake struck, only for it to crash into the ground as Jaune seemingly split into two.

"What the?" The Jaune's spoke together. "I can copy myself? Awesome!" The two Jaunes flew towards the beast, one clawing at the eyes and the other tearing down the back with his sword.

The Omega howled and phased into the ground, seemingly defeated.

The Jaunes cheered before high fiving and merging back into one, then collapsing to one knee. " Every time! Can't I get a new power and it just be easy?"

Yang hoisted him to his feet, brushing him off. "Sorry Jaune, but no sleeping on the job!"

A Beowolf roared, signaling the other Grimm to attack. Ruby planted Crescent Rose on the ground before kicking away the Grimm in a circle, knocking them back without causing any lasting damage.

Yang fired Ember Celica into the ground and launched herself into the sky, bombarding the Grimm on the ground. Just as she was making some headway, three Nevermores crashed into her, sending her crashing to the ground.

Blake slashed Gambol Shroud at a Beowolf, working around it and stabbing it in the throat before turning and firing on the other approaching Grimm, hitting several Creeps and sending them to the ground.

Jaune jumped around three Beowolves, slashing his claws at them before sending a wave of ecto-energy at them, bisecting them. "Take that!" A Deathstalker started towards him, only to have a car hit it in the face. Jaune turned around to see Yang hefting car after car towards the approaching Grimm.

She threw one final car at the mob of Grimm before shouting, "Hit the deck!". Jaune ducked as she fired a round at one of the cars, causing a massive explosion and destroying a decent amount of Grimm.

"Nice work, sis!" Ruby shouted as she slashed at a Creep in front of her, only for a Beringel to roar next to her. She backed up in surprise only for a shot to ring out, startling both Ruby and the Grimm.

From the east, Nora came flying in on her hammer towards the Beringel, slamming it on the head and killing the beast.

"And smash!" She cried as the rest of PRWN leaped down from a Bullhead.

Pyrrha drew her weapons, swinging her blade at the Grimm. "Let's move!" She ordered as the four took off towards the beasts.

As a large Ursa fell, Sun and Neptune appeared from behind it, flashing badges towards the two teams. "Nobody move, junior detectives!" Sun shouted.

"We have badges, so you _know_ it's official" Neptune said, bumping fists with Sun.

A ship roared in the sky, with the Atlesian Military flagship coming into view. From inside, dropships flew out and began deploying Atlesian Knight-200 units onto the battlefield.

Sun and Neptune looked up in awe of the fleet, dropping their badges to the ground.

As Team JBRY looked up in the sky, an Ursa leaped at Jaune from behind. Before the strike could connect, one of the dropships fired a chaingun burst at it, killing it instantly.

As the robotic Knights deployed, they started firing at the Grimm. Two of the Knights were stampeded on by a Boarbatusk, but a separate group of three Knights fired on another Ursa.

Cinder appeared from an alleyway, nodding her head, signalling Mercury and Emerald to attack the Grimm as she walks off.

Mercury fired his boots into the ground, launching himself at a Beowolf and striking it in the face, leaving Emerald open to the Ursa Major behind her.

She drew her pistols from their holsters, flicking the blades out as the guns whirred to life. The Alpha charged at her, blocking her pistol rounds before she extended the blades fully and launching them out on chains, swinging around the beast until it fell to the ground, dead.

The rubble pile burst again, only for Qrow and Penny to come out, each slashing at groups of Grimm, destroying them easily.

From above, another Bullhead roared, dropping off Team CFVY into the fray. Yatsuhashi landed first, only to be surrounded by a pack of Grimm. He hefted and swung his greatsword onto the ground, unleashing a shockwave and sending the Grimm flying.

Velvet and Fox jumped into the air, each kicking and punching at approaching Grimm. Fox jumped forwards and unleashed a combo of slashes at another Ursa Major, delivering a final blow as he channeled Aura into his strike, sending the dead Ursa flying into a pack of Grimm before it exploded, sending spikes into the Grimm around it.

Coco walked forwards and gave Fox a light slap on the butt, JBRY and PRWN watching in shock and awe. "Nice hustle, Fox. Good job." She walked towards a Beowolf, sizing it up under her sunglasses. "You just destroyed my favorite clothing store." She spat on the ground. "Prepare to die." The Beowolf swung at her, only for Coco to swat its paw away and kick it in the crotch. As it fell, she slammed her handbag onto its head, killing it.

Some of the remaining Grimm began to rush her, and Velvet went to draw her weapon from behind her, only to be stopped by Coco.

"Hey, come on, you just spent all the semester building that up. Don't waste it here." Velvet nodded before stepping back. Coco stepped forwards and transformed her handbag into a giant minigun, firing a relentlesss barrage of rounds towards the advancing horde of Grimm, decimating them entirely.

Jaune slashed at a Beowolf's throat as the remaining Grimm were killed off, a cheer emanating from his lungs. "We did it!"

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

A few hours later, JBRY sat on the landing dock of Beacon, watching Bullheads fly in and out of the city.

Yang stretched her arms up, yawning slightly. "Well, Jaune was right. We did it!"

"We did it." Blake said blandly, earning a squeeze from Jaune.

"Think we'll get some extra credit? My Grimm theory grade sure could use a boost!" Jaune said, grinning like an idiot. The others laughed at him.

"Jaune, a two-headed snake literally crushed a bakery. I wouldn't count on it." Yang said, earning another laugh from the team.

Ruby took this chance to pipe up. "Plus, I mean, we didn't solve everything. A lot of people were hurt, and we still don't even know why they did this, and Torchwick got away!"

"Not to mention the fact that that…Neo girl is a ghost! And not a half like me, she's full on specter!" Jaune shouted, waving his arms over his head.

Blake looked at her partner, letting out a sigh. "Unfortunately, we don't have all the answers, but we do have a lot of dangerous people behind bars. And I think that's something we could be proud of."

Ruby pumped her fist to the sky. "Yeah! And if anyone tries something like this again, we'll be there to stop them!"

Yang stretched out backwards, laying herself on the ground. "Yay, teamwork, camaraderie, good guys, go team, alright, good job... So, what now?"

The rest of JBRY was silent.

"Uhh... Time for bed?" Ruby let out a breath of exhaustion.

Yang let out a groan from her relaxed pose. "Please."

"Absolutely" Blake chimed in.

"I think I'm ready to sleep forever." Jaune said as the girls laughed at him, the team standing and making their way to the dorms.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Screens were lit all around Ozpin as the Council reached a verdict. "Ozpin, this went too far. You should have sent an experienced team to investigate this, and now not only is the city damaged, but people live in fear!"

"Yes sir, I understand, but also remember that this is a scho-"

"No, Ozpin! Not this time! The Council has decided to appoint General Ironwood head of security for the Tournament, as well as up his clearance at Beacon. Wherever you go, he will be."

"Very well…" Ozpin spoke with disdain.

"On another note, Qrow. You are to remain at Beacon for the time being. We'll deal with you later." The screens shut down, and Qrow let out a groan.

"Thanks, Jimmy. Now the people get to live in fear with the only person who gives a damn has a babysitter!" He shouted, drawing his flask and taking a swig.

"Silence, Qrow. This is for the best. You two will see it, one way or another…" Ironwood trailed off as he left the office, causing Ozpin and Qrow to look at each other with concern.

 ** _RWBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Cinder finished her work and took a step back to admire it. "Perfect. Looking like this, no one will recognize you here, Adam."

Adam stood, his once red hair now shining a brilliant gold. He pulled a mask over his mouth and nose, his red eyes flashing around the room. "If I see her when this all goes down, don't expect me to hold back."

Cinder placed her hand on his cheek, raising the heat ever so slightly. "If you see her before then, you will tolerate her and not get too close. _She_ could be the only one that would recognize you here, and we can't have anyone else interfering with our plans. Now, why don't we go down to the training rooms and see what you're made of?"

 **A/N: I AM SO. SORRY. This has been a HELLUVA two weeks, what with work, then being sick for a week, and the stupid election, and more work. Ugh. Rambling. So to make up for it, an extra long chapter! A LOT happened this time around, what with the mission and the breach, and NEO BEING A F*CKING GHOST. Did anyone see that coming? I did. But now we enter the phase of the Vytal Festival! EXCITEMENT! I'll do my best to get the next chapter out sooner rather than later, so please don't think I've lost interest in this story! Now…ONTO REVIEWS!**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: Right! And this time around we had Penny, master of technology! I'm not done with her yet! *Evil laugh* Oh, and that Jaune/Taiyang meme. Bahahahaha.**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thank you!**

 **desdelor97: Gratzie!**

 **Guest: Good wow? Bad wow? Thank you?**

 **Dante R Vale: Cue the M. Knight memes**

 **Rjstx: Yeah, I kind of like it. Oh, and now Michael and Lindsay are having a kid. Dope!**

 **.1: Yep! She's up to WAY MORE than meets the eye. Like a Transformer!**

 **Quathis: Thanks! I may be throwing a certain Arc sister into the fray soon, so maybe she can help with it!**

 **CrowBlood666: Not really? Omega are more like…reverse world Grimm. Way stronger, and they possess ghost abilities. As for the reality trip reference, maybe! Stay tuned!**

 **thatrandomguy42: Thanks!**

 **Well guys, that makes 10, count them, TEN CHAPTERS of this story! I'm pumped for what's yet to come, so until then…**

 **REVIEW PLEASE!**


	11. Lovestruck

Phantom of Beacon

The JBRY dorm was filled with the peaceful sound of…snoring. So much snoring. A loud series of thumps on the ceiling sent Jaune leaping off his bed, transforming as he hit the ground. He clenched his fists, ghostly energy surging through them as he heard a voice from above.

"Hey! Keep it down, freshmen!" The voice of Coco Adel rang out.

Blake looked over from her bunk and sprang up, placing a hand on Jaune's shoulder. His head darted her way with a blind fury until green met amber and his face quivered. "Jaune, it's okay. We're back at school. You're _safe_ now. We're all safe." Her voice was calm, soothing to the sound. She turned him towards her and gently wrapped her arms over his shoulders in a hug, slowly pulling him tight.

Jaune stiffened at first, memories of the night before clouding his thoughts, but Blake's embrace brought him back to clarity. His arms slowly rose under hers, hands clasping around her back as his eyes faded from green to blue, body shifting back to human form.

"It's okay, Jaune. Look, why don't we head down early, take out some of this post mission aggression?" She suggested, pulling away and already donning her bow and combat gear.

Jaune's cheeks flushed as he turned from her. "Blake! I'm right here!"

She smirked. "Yes, I know. But I know you wouldn't try anything, and I know I could still beat you." She strapped Gambol Shroud to her back, quietly walking to the door. "Come on, let's let these two sleep. I couldn't get much more with Yang's snoring anyway."

 ** _R_** ** _WBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Blake ducked under an energy blast and went into a back handspring. "You're getting better with those! A bit more training and-ah!" She was cut off as Jaune hurled an orb of energy at her, slightly singing her bow.

"Ah! Blake! I'm sorry!" Jaune ran towards her only to phase his neck as her blade pointed right at his throat.

Blake grinned, retracting her blade and sliding it into the sheath. "You're getting faster. Now, no phasing!" She swung her blade from the sheath, sending it vertically towards Jaune's chest.

His eyes widened before his body split into two, both versions shouting out "Blake!"

She grinned widely. "See! I knew you could do it! Now hold that clone for a few minutes this time. Try to use your powers a bit!"

Jaune 1 and 2 spent the next several minutes practicing phasing, firing off energy blasts, and turning invisible. Eventually he felt his energy begin to wane, and the two clasped hands, merging back into one. This time, Jaune didn't fall to his knees, rather exhaling loudly instead.

Blake moved to hug her partner when a loud series of claps signaled panic in the two. She turned her head towards the training room entrance to find a blonde girl staring back at her, blue eyes gleaming in a familiar way.

"Well Jauney, seems you've grown up quite a bit. Now are you gonna stand there staring, or are you gonna come hug your sister?" Jen Arc said, smirking as her brother ran towards her.

"Jen! What are you doing here?" He shouted, his eyes switching back to blue and his white hair returning to its natural blonde state. Jaune skidded to a stop as he reached his sister, arms wrapping around her in a hug.

She returned the hug, ruffling her brother's hair, earning a muffled groan in response. "Surprise! Ozpin asked me to come in as a favor for the Vytal Festival!"

"You? Really? What for?" Jaune asked.

Jen raised her eyebrow, crossing her arms over her chest. "What's wrong, little brother? Don't think I'm _qualified_ to be here?"

Blake let out a laugh as Jaune stammered. "From his weapons, I'd say you're more than qualified."

"You must be Blake, Jaune's partner? Thanks for whipping him into shape. As for what I'm doing here, Jauney, you're looking at the tech adviser for the tournament! I'll be inspecting all weaponry beforehand, and offering emergency repair services, as well as upgrades for a small price." Jen smirked, eyes glinting at the thought of profit.

Jaune grinned a wide smile, pumping his fists in the air. "Awesome!"

"So it looks like you've got a pretty good handle on your powers, little brother. Much better than when your pants were falling down all the time. What else can you do?" Jen said, looking her brother up and down.

Jaune scratched the back of his head, looking off to the side. "Well, you know about the intangibility, flying, and invisibility. Besides that I've got energy blasts, splitting myself into two, energy shields…oh, and this cool ghostly wail that can wreck things!" He said a bit excitedly, bouncing a bit until he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"By things he also means himself, considering that he can't use it without collapsing back to human form. But we're working on his stamina, and he's improving every day." Blake said the first bit sarcastically, but caught Jen's suggestive glance at the end.

"Oh _really_ Ms. Belladonna? Working on Jaune's _stamina_? Been keeping him up late on that?"Jen waggled her eyebrows, causing Blake to blush and Jaune's face to drop.

"JEN!" Jaune shouted, causing his sister to laugh.

Blake stared at the two, watching Jen poke and prod at Jaune, teasing him. _"It's like watching him with Yang as his sister…"_ She thought to herself.

Jen adjusted her bag, still on her back. "Well, you can show me everything later. For now, let's head to the armory. I've got some upgrades for your gear that are gonna _rock_ the tournament!"

 ** _R_** ** _WBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Jaune watched as Jen tinkered with his gauntlets, taking note as she rewired the circuits and added a cylindrical device into the main chamber. "Wait, what's that for?"

Jen looked around before continuing her work. "You mentioned in your letter that you've run across a few Omegas. I haven't figured out a way to destroy them yet, so I came up with a capture unit instead. You'll need to change it after every few captures, but I'm adding a quick change mechanism so it won't be too difficult." Jen released the soldering iron, setting it down next to the gauntlets. She removed her goggles, her eyes being the only part of her face not covered in soot. "Plus there's a few tricks in these to help channel your powers discreetly."

"Well that's good. I can only play off intangibility as my semblance for so long until someone gets suspicious about everything else…especially Ironwood…" Jaune said, nervously running his hand along his forearm.

"Wait, Ironwood? GENERAL Ironwood? As in the man who helped the SDC with the project that caused your accident?" Jen shouted, covering her mouth until she remembered the armory was abandoned.

Blake nodded, though cocked her eyebrow. "The SDC? Weiss' father's company caused your powers and the Omegas?"

Jen nodded, taking Jaune's look of shock into account. "I take it you know the younger Schnee then? But yes, her father is responsible. Jacques Schnee is…not a good man. Mom and Dad always told me about how the SDC used to be a kinder company. Nicholas Schnee, the founder of the company worked hard in Dust mines while training at combat school, learning everything he could so that he could venture out and help find Dust, spreading the Schnee name across Remnant."

"But what happened? If the SDC was so great, what changed?" Jaune asked, looking both at Jen and Blake.

Blake chimed in, crossing her arms and scowling. "Jacques Schnee happened. He took over the company and started mistreating workers. The Faunus became second class citizens to the SDC, hence the change in the White Fang and the animosity."

"The sad thing is, Jacques married into the family, taking on the Schnee name from his wife. How he convinced Nicholas that he would be a better head than his own daughter, we'll never know. What we _do_ know is that he's bad news for everyone. Ironwood reports to him, so I'd steer clear if you can." Jen paused, looking at the uneasy glance the two shared. "He already knows who you are, doesn't he?"

Jaune's face paled whiter than his ghostly hair, his eyes cast downwards. "Well, yes and no. Ironwood _does_ know who I am, but that's due to an attack on my team. He _doesn't_ know that I'm the phantom, that much we know for sure."

Blake's eyebrow cocked at the name. "Phantom? Did you just give yourself a nickname?"

"Well it's better than everyone calling me 'ghost boy'…besides…that's reserved…" He blushed, earning a grin from Blake and a smirk from Jen.

"Ah young love. You two really _have_ been doing some extra training then!" Jen announced.

Before Jaune could say anything in protest, the door swung open, revealing Ruby and Yang, both with an odd glint in their eyes. "Jauney! How's it going _loverboy_? We sure did miss you this morning! Ruby here was even gonna put on a show!" Yang said.

Jaune and Blake stared at their teammate, mouths open at her forwardness. "Yang…you do realize you just offered Ruby up as a piece of meat…right?" Blake's voice rang with a tone of pure confusion, Jaune nodding in agreement.

Ruby waved her hand at the two. "Pshh, I'm old enough to make my own decisions about what I want and _who_ I want, and I want Jaune. So leader, care to head back to the dorm, deflower this Rose?" Ruby said suggestively, adding a wink at the end.

Jaune's face turned beet red, his eyes wide as dinner plates. "Ruby! What's gotten into you?!"

"Oh nothing yet, but I'm sure your sword would just _love it_ inside my sheath. Another great sword of the Arc family I assume?" She licked her lips hungrily, causing Jaune to jump behind Blake.

Yang grinned, crossing her arms over her chest. "And when you're done with Ruby, you're all mine." Her lilac eyes were glazed over with a slight red tint, not the usual of her semblance.

Jen's eyes darted between the two before turning to her brother. "Jaune…this is combat school, _not_ the PlayDust Mansion!"

"Jen, I swear I don't know what's gotten into-" He paused as Ruby and Yang went to interrupt. "What's wrong with them." Jaune's eyes glinted green before a strange wisp of cold air blew out of his mouth.

Blake glanced towards him, eyes wide. "Jaune, you don't think…"

Yang and Ruby's eyes turned full red, filled with a carnal hunger. "You're mine, Jaune!" The sisters lunged for Jaune, Yang for his waist and Ruby for his face.

"Ah!" Jaune phased the pair through him and ran, pulling Jen and Blake with him through the door.

Blake kept pace as the door shattered behind them, speeding up a bit as she looked back at the sisters, both lost to primal nature. "Jen, any chance the gauntlets could help us here?"

Jen grinned. "Of course! If there's any ghostly anything going on with those two, the gauntlets should fix them right up! Jaune, use the new attachment!" She said as they rounded the corner towards the main courtyard.

"Got it! New attachment…and they're sitting back at the armory..." Jaune pulled the pair behind a pillar, ducking as the sisters entered the area.

"Oh Jaaaauuuunnnnneeeee, come out to plaaaayyyyyy! We won't bite! Well, Ruby won't. I like the biting!" Yang shouted, causing several students to stare at her.

"What's with Xiao Long and Rose?"

"Guess JBRY is just a harem now."

"I like biting too!"

"Coco! Well actually now that you mention it…" Velvet and Coco's eyes glinted red, joining the sisters.

Jaune paled, his hands shaking nervously. "Blake!" He whispered. "What are we gonna do?!"

"Can't you just fly through everyone and grab the gauntlets, zap everyone back to normal, and save the day?" Jen suggested.

Blake let out a sigh. "With all the new Atlas security around? They'd pick up his ghostly signature and Ironwood would be down here faster than you could say Schnee."

"Crap! Well, we're going to have to sneak back there and get them, Huntress _and_ Huntsman style." Jen added the last bit as Jaune opened his mouth to protest.

The pillar exploded behind them as Yang fired off a round from Ember Celica. "Jauney! Knew you couldn't hide forever! Get him, ladies!"

Velvet and Ruby sprang forwards, the rabbit Faunus rivaling Ruby's speed. Blake tugged Jaune downwards, watching as the pair sailed just inches overhead.

"You can't just keep him all to yourself, Blake!" Ruby drew Crescent Rose, the blade gleaming in the sunlight. She swung her baby behind her, firing off a round and soaring towards Blake, eyes clouded red with lust.

Blake drew Gambol Shroud and the blades rang out as they collided, metal against metal. Ruby's face was scrunched as she struggled against Blake. She fired another round, sending her sailing backwards towards Yang and Coco.

"Jaune, we need to go, now!" Blake shouted. She drew a cartridge from her pack that Jaune charged with ecto energy and slid it into the chamber of the blade. "This may help, a bit, now let's move!"

Jaune nodded and charged a tiny bit of energy in his hands before throwing it at the ground, a green dust cloud covering the trio as shouts rang out.

"Jauney!"

"Get back here, loverboy!"

"Yo Arc!"

Jaune, Blake, and Jen ran to the east entrance of the building, barging through crowds of students still exhausted from their missions. They slammed the door behind them, Jen grabbing a bench from the side of the hall and propping it up against the door.

"Okay, so we're in the east wing, and the armory is just down below us. Maybe if I phase in here, the Atlesian tech won-"

"Ah, Mr. Arc, Miss Belladonna, how good to see you again. And Ms. Arc, glad to have you here. I'm sure Ozpin wouldn't have called for you if he didn't think that you'd do a better job than my Atlesian technicians." Ironwood nearly spit out the last words, his seething tone not going unnoticed.

Jen cocked her head to the side, an annoyed grin coming to her face. "Why General Ironwood! So nice that you're able to take time out of your _busy schedule_ to keep finding my little brother and his teammates!"

"Ms. Arc, if there's an issue here-"

Jaune stepped forwards, holding his hands up in defense. "Actually General, what Jen meant was that she _appreciates_ your interest in the students of Beacon!"

A loud thud rang from the door behind them, the wood splintering slightly. "What was tha-"

"Nothing!" The three spoke simultaneously as the door was hit again, this time a fist shape starting to dent the wood. "Nothing at all!"

"Actually General, I was wondering if you could-"

Ironwood's scroll rang out just then. He signaled a 'hold on' motion and answered. "Hello? Yes. Yes sir, I'll be there momentarily." He hung up his scroll and looked at the three. "I'm afraid I have to leave. Something important has come to my attention, and I must handle it personally. Good day, ladies, Mr. Arc." He nodded and headed off down another hall towards the landing strip.

"Well that was lucky, now if we just-"

Jaune was interrupted as the door was shattered, revealing a lusty eyed Yang, Ruby, Velvet, Coco, and now Pyrrha all approaching the trio. "Oh Jauney, look who we found? Turns out cereal girl here has quite an appetite for dorky blondes."

Pyrrha batted her eyelashes and smirked a very un-Pyrrha like smirk, placing her hands on her hips suggestively. "Come on, Jaune. Don't you want to come _train_ with me? I'm sure we can work on your _stamina_." She winked and the other girls giggled.

"Deja vu right there. Speaking of right…run!" Jaune bolted down the right corridor, Blake and Jen taking off after him as the female mob chased them towards the stairwell.

"Pyrrha! Use your semblance!" Ruby shouted.

Pyrrha reached out with a black glow around her hand as her target was located. Jaune's belt buckle began to glow black as he felt himself slow down.

"Nope!" He phased the belt off and continued running, phasing his body as he hit the stairs. "Blake! Jen!"

Blake and Jen drew their weapons, guarding the door. "Just go, Jaune!" Blake shouted as she clashed with Pyrrha.

Jaune hit the floor and took off running into the armory, spotting his gauntlets sitting on the workbench where Jen left them. As he reached out to grab one, he heard a voice behind him.

"Not so fast, Jaune."

He turned to see a red eyed Yang staring at him, Ember Celica cocked and aimed towards him. He raised an eyebrow, staring at her. "Yang, you know you can't hit me, so what are you planning on doing?"

She snapped her fingers and Blake was thrown overhead in a net. "Give yourself to us, to _me_ , or kit kat here takes a nice warm bath below. Got it?" Her eyes were nearly glowing red, the ghostly energy emanating from them like venom.

Jaune froze, staring at her and then to Blake, catching Blake glancing from left to right. _"Oh!"_ he thought. He split himself into two, sending his copy through the floor unnoticed, headed towards Yang. "Yang, you're right. Clearly I'm meant for you! This has all been but a facade in order to gain your attention!" Jaune spoke with pure clarity, though he was lying through his teeth. As Yang began to loosen her grip on Blake, the clone phased through the floor, grabbing Yang behind the arms, shouting "Now!". Jaune grabbed his gauntlets as the rest of the girls ran down the stairs towards him, carrying Jen above them. "Hope this works!" he shouted as he fired off a blue beam, watching as the ghostly energy in the girls was forced out of them into a capture unit.

Yang's eyes faded to their normal lilac before she went limp, Jaune's clone catching her and setting her down gently before merging with Jaune. The others fell to their knees as they returned to their normal states, Jen landing safely on her feet. As Jaune ran over, he caught a glimpse of a pair of red eyes staring at him from above before they vanished. He pulled the net off Blake who pulled him into a hug.

"Nice wordplay there Jaune. Almost had me convinced." She said smugly.

Jaune let out a laugh as he pulled back. "Well I knew she wouldn't respond to any reasoning, so I had to do something, and I figured why not play into the insanity?"

Yang stirred, grabbing her head as she sat up. "Ugh, my head. Jaune? Blake? What am I doing down here? Don't we have to get ready for the dance?"

Blake and Jaune stared at her, both with confused looks on their faces. "Yang? The dance was a few days ago…remember?" Jaune spoke slowly as she gripped her head in pain.

"No…I don't. What happened?"

"So you don't remember kissing Jaune, going to the dance with both of us, the mission, the innuendo, today?" Blake's face remained stoic, though her tone carried an air of suspicion.

Yang's mouth dropped at the first few words, her eyes widening. "Wait, I did what?! I mean, not that you aren't attractive Jauney, but I'm more interested in someone else. Blake…you were okay with it?"

Blake smirked. "It wouldn't be the first time I've been asked to share, though I knew I'd win in the end."

Yang let out a light laugh before grabbing at her head in pain again. "Ah well, guess you've got claws then kitty cat."

"Let's go check on the others, see if they're okay." Jaune said, hoisting himself and Blake up before the pair helped Yang to her feet.

 ** _R_** ** _WBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

Cinder sat patiently as Emerald phased through the floor, watching as the girl collapsed the moment she became solid. "I take it the plan hit a complication?"

Emerald nodded, red eyes looking weary and bloodshot. "Manipulating one or two minds is easy, but the more it spreads…but the plan was successful. I distracted them long enough to get what we needed, and now there's bound to be tension among them."

Cinder smirked, snapping her fingers as Mercury and Adam entered the room. " Emerald, your ability to manipulate the minds of those around you is an _invaluable_ asset through this. Everything is going according to plan."

 ** _R_** ** _WBYRWBYRWBYRWBYRWBY_**

General Ironwood saluted as Jacques Schnee stepped off his Dust plane, looking poised as ever with an air of superiority. "Mr. Schnee, sir, welcome to Beacon Academy."

"Ah James, a pleasure for you to see me. Now, take me to your ship. I want to know everything there is about this ghost child. It will be mine soon enough." A grim grin was plastered on his face as his eyes shimmered from blue to red for just a moment, before Ironwood led him towards the fleet. "The sooner I have my ghost in possession, the sooner I can leave this place. Such a backwards kingdom."

Ironwood nodded, pointing his hand in the direction of the Atlesian fleet.

 **A/N: Guys I am extremely sorry for the long delay. I've been crazy busy with cosplay stuff! I made a set of Gunchucks, a new shield, and retouched my sword up as well as some fabric stuff for Paradise City Comic Con! Met Arryn, Kara, Elizabeth, and Vic there and it was amazing! We even won best novice group at the cosplay contest! But anyways, I'm again extremely sorry for this delay.**

UPDATE: So I've been reading reviews for this chapter already. Guys, calm yourselves. I said long ago that this would not be a harem. I planned the Emerald thing a ways back, and I didn't want to give it away. I can barely write two people together, so why would I try for three? Just let the story progress!

ON TO REVIEWS.

 **dracohalo117: And now we have Ironwood AND Jacques.**

 **HaveBookWillTravel: I understand the concern on rushing things, and lately I've been trying to slow it down a bit, and it'll slow down as the Vytal festival comes around. Obviously this chapter showed that a bit? I hope? And yeah, I know I can reply through PMs, but I just like this style. It reminds me rather than keeping up with a bunch of messages between work and cosplay. As for the powers, they're developing more and more! I very much appreciate the review, and the fact that you took the time to go into things! I'm glad you're enjoying what's around so far, so please stay tuned!**

 **Nexus Bladeguard: And now we have Emerald as a ghost!**

 **desdelor97: Thank you!**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks!**

 **Quathis: Enter Jen Arc! And I'm starting to split away from pure canon, so don't worry!**

 **gamelover41592: Thank you!**

 **So there you have it! Chapter 11! And we hit 100 reviews! But anyways guys, we now have Jen Arc at Beacon! And Jacques Schnee! I took in a bit from the most recent World of Remnant and threw it in here, kind of playing into Jacques' cruelty and all in all badness. Things are going to get heated! And I promise, I WILL be updating Battle of the Bands soon! I've also got another story in the works, so stay tuned for 'Jaune Arc and the Elemental Masters'!**

 **Oh, and Emerald is a ghost. Did I forget to mention that? CARDINAL OUT!**


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